These Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies are made using only 3 ingredients! This easy slice-and-bake cookie is irresistibly buttery with deep caramel notes. Simplicity at its best!
Moist, molasses-spiked brown sugar is undeniably a quintessential ingredient in baking. It adds a deep caramel flavor, moisture, and depth, as in all brown sugar dessert recipes.
Traditional shortbreads, like the chocolate shortbread cookies are typically made with white granulated or confectioners’ sugar, giving them a melt-in-your-mouth texture. They often include flavorings such as vanilla and salt, but they don’t contain eggs or leavening agents.
When brown sugar is used instead, it adds a slight density due to its moisture and brings a richer complexity from the molasses, setting the brown sugar shortbread cookies apart from white sugar counterparts.
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Why you'll love it?
- 3 Ingredient cookie
- Crisp, crumbly yet light and tender.
- Easy slice-and-bake recipe
- Perfect Christmas cookie
- No eggs
- Freeze the dough for months
Ingredients
Scroll down to the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and amounts.
- Brown Sugar - Just six tablespoons of golden brown sugar brings a wonderful molasses flavor to the mix. You can easily swap in either light or dark brown sugar for a delicious twist!
- Butter - Adds a rich buttery flavor that's simply unbeatable. Skip the salt if using salted butter.
- All purpose flour - After testing different flour amounts, I found that using 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon of flour creates a perfect balance for sturdy yet tender brown sugar shortbreads.
- Salt - Although salt doesn't count as an ingredient, it plays a crucial role in all baking recipes.
Variations
This brown sugar cookie recipe keeps it simple by skipping flavorings like vanilla extract, cinnamon, or cardamom, allowing the natural molasses flavor to truly shine through. However, here are a few variation suggestions to try -
- Add spices - Mix in ground cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice along with flour, which makes it perfect for fall season.
- Mix in nuts - Replace some of the flour with finely minced walnuts or toasted pecans.
- Dip in chocolate - Like the chocolate coconut macaroons, dip one-half of each cooled biscuit in melted dark or milk chocolate and place on parchment paper until set. Alternatively, drizzle the melted chocolate using a fork on the cooled cookies.
- Make chocolate sandwich cookies - Sandwich to baked cookies with melted chocolate or ganache.
- Flavorings - Add vanilla or almond extract to the cookie dough.
- Add some sparkle - Sprinkle coarse raw or white sugar on top before baking.
How to make?
You can find full printable recipe below, but here is a quick overview of the procedure along with step-by-step photos.
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Tip: Don't skip chilling as for the lemon ricotta cookies! This will cause the butter to melt immediately upon hitting the hot oven, resulting in excessive spreading and causing the biscuits to lose their shape and texture.
Step 7 - Place the sliced cookies in a parchment lined baking sheet about one inch apart. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 25 minutes.
Pro tip: Rotate the pan halfway through baking, to ensure they brown evenly.
How to store?
- Storing baked cookies - Place cooled biscuits in an airtight container or zipper bag and store them at room temperature for up to a week.
- Storing cookie dough - Wrapped dough log can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.
- Freeze baked cookies - Place shortbreads in freezer safe zipper bag and freeze for up to two months.
- Freeze dough - Wrap the log tightly in two layers of plastic wrap, place it in a freezer-safe zipper bag, and freeze for up to a month. Transfer the dough to the fridge the night before baking.
Recipe tips
- Brown sugar - You can use light, golden, or dark brown sugar, but I personally prefer golden brown sugar for its well-balanced molasses flavor.
- Chill the dough until firm - It is the key to any slice-and-bake cookie recipe.
- Skip salt - If using salted butter.
Recipe FAQs
Shortbreads typically have a higher ratio of butter to flour, with butter, sugar, and flour as their main ingredients. This gives them a rich, mildly sweet flavor and a crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth texture.
In contrast, sugar cookies maintain a more balanced ratio of butter, sugar, and flour, often including additional ingredients like eggs and baking powder. They tend to be sweeter due to a higher sugar content and usually have a softer and chewier texture.
The recipe can be easily made by hand. Add the butter, brown sugar and salt into a bowl and cream for about 3 minutes or until fluffy using a wooden spoon. Stir in flour and continue mixing with the spoon until comes together. Shape into a disc, roll into a log, chill, slice and bake as per instructions.
Brown sugar, with its molasses content, infuses a subtle caramel flavor, offering a distinctive depth to cookies. Its moisture content contributes to softer, denser, and chewier cookies compared to those made only with white sugar. Additionally, the molasses imparts a darker hue to the cookies, setting them apart from those made exclusively with white sugar.
More brown sugar desserts
Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup Butter (1 stick) room temperature
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons light or golden brown sugar both packed
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup + 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
Instructions
- Add butter, brown sugar and salt into a medium bowl, beat with an electric beater for 1 to 2 minutes, until light and fluffy.
- Add flour and continue beating, on low speed, until the dough looks crumbly. Using hands, shape dough into a smooth ball.
- Gently roll into a 10 to 11 inch log, wrap it with parchment paper, refrigerate it for a minimum of 6 hours, or up to 2 days.
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove the log from the fridge and cut it into ¼-inch thick slices using a sharp knife.
- Place slices on the prepared baking sheet, spacing about 1 inch apart.
- Bake 19 to 22 minutes, until golden brown in color, rotating the pan halfway through baking.
- Place pan on a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information, based on third-party calculations, should be seen as estimates, not guarantees, as various factors like product types, brands, processing methods, and more can alter the nutritional content in recipes.
Did you make this recipe? I’d love your feedback! Please let me know by leaving a comment or review below or snap a photo and share on Instagram.
All contents and images are my original work, unless and otherwise mentioned. Please do not use my recipes or images without linking back to www.kitchenathoskins.com. If you wish to republish a recipe, please rewrite in your own words and don’t forget to include a link back to the original recipe.
Liz
Have had this same recipe for forty plus years. It is the best and so easy. I have always rolled dough into balls and pressed down with a fork. I'm now going to try your log. This cookie recipe is so easy if you need to make cookies in a hurry.
A friend from England gave me this cherished recipe. It is great and everyone loves the cookies.
Maria Doss
Hi Liz, The pressed down version sounds easy too. I gotta agree, sometimes the simplest of recipes are the best, Maria
Wendy
Can I chill the dough in the freezer for a shorter amount of time?
Maria Doss
Hi Wendy, We wouldn't recommend it. Freezing for a short time might result in inconsistent chilling and harder to slice into even slices - Maria
Marcene
Would this dough be good for cutout cookies? Would the chill time be shortened?
Maria Doss
Hi Marcene, You could roll the dough between two sheets of parchment, chill until firm, cut and bake as instructed. Sincere apologies for a late reply, wishing you a wonderful new year - Maria