
Christmas isn’t here yet, but I’m already craving cookies like crazy. This morning I was looking through different cookie recipes I’ve posted in the past and I ran across this recipe for Brown Sugar Shortbread that was hidden in a post about Lemon Shortbread from a few years back. Since these cookies are so delicious, I decided it was time to give them their own space to shine. Keep in mind that a batch of shortbread packaged in a cute box or tin makes a wonderful gift!
Brown Sugar Shortbread
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl. By hand, stir in flour a little at a time. Dough will be crumbly, so dump it out onto a counter top or pastry board and work it together by hand until smooth. Pat or roll dough out into a rectangle that is about 1/2 inch thick. Cut into small squares, rectangles or diamonds (whichever you prefer). Arrange cookies on an ungreased baking sheet (I use parchment paper for easy cleanup) and bake 20-25 minutes in a preheated 325 degree oven until the bottom edges are just starting to brown.
Recipe notes: This recipe assumes you are using regular salted butter. If you choose to use unsalted butter, whisk 1/2 teaspoon salt (or slightly more if using kosher salt) into the flour before mixing the dough.
Related Recipes:
- Lemon Shortbread
- Classic Snickerdoodles
- Persimmon Cookies Recipe
- Whole Wheat Raspberry Almond Thumbprint Cookies
Around the Web:
- Hearst Castle Shortbread Cookies from 101 Cookbooks
- Twice-Baked Shortbread from Smitten Kitchen
- Shortbread Cookies from Simply Recipes
- Brown Sugar Pecan Shortbread from Butter Sugar Flour






Those look seriously DELISH !!! I can’t wait to try them. Thank you for sharing the recipe *my mouth is watering*. xx
5:31 pm Dec 13th, 2012These are so beautiful and would be great as a gift! Have a great day!
7:21 pm Dec 13th, 2012They really lookd delicious!!! I could eat them all!
8:50 am Dec 14th, 2012Bookmarked! These look fabulous…
10:32 am Dec 14th, 2012Approx. how many cookies will this yield?
11:10 am Dec 14th, 2012These look so good! I don’t think I’ve ever made a shortbread with brown sugar–super excited to try it out!
12:34 pm Dec 14th, 2012I just made these. They are fantastic! Thank you so much for sharing.
6:19 pm Dec 14th, 2012Lately I’ve eaten an awful lot of shortbread with apple butter, and I have an unholy love of brown sugar, so I think that you’ve just introduced me to an even better combination. I can’t wait!
8:35 pm Dec 14th, 2012big fan of simple recipies with few ingredients. I think this qualifies
1:59 pm Dec 15th, 2012These looks delicious, and so easy! Can’t wait to try them.
11:54 am Dec 17th, 2012I saw a recipe a few weeks ago for shortbread made with apple butter. Now, I can’t find it anywhere! Any idea what I’m talking about?
6:47 pm Dec 18th, 2012I just made these and they are very good. I made them in my Kitchen Aid stand mixer so was super easy. I think I now prefer shortbread with brown sugar rather than icing sugar.
Thanks for a great recipe that is also easy.
1:08 am Dec 24th, 2012Three ingredients and one of them is brown sugar? Love it! These look fabulous. Happy holidays, Nicole!
8:06 pm Dec 24th, 2012These look absolutely mouth-watering. I’ll bet they smell so good when they’re baking. I’m going to try them in the morning. Thank you for the recipe and have a Happy New Year!
11:35 pm Dec 28th, 2012Totally awesome. Butter and sugar…two of the main food groups! I plan to try these soon.
5:55 pm Jan 22nd, 2013OMG! Can this get any simpler? I was searching for a sweet treat to give my little one and this one came up. Will make some changes and get back with the results. Thanks for this.
8:05 pm Jan 25th, 2013I want to make this more kid friendly. Can i add a little vanilla essence to take the harshness off the brown sugar?
1:59 am Feb 4th, 2013Cracking recipe! I made these for christmas, and they vanished within minutes. Thanks for sharing!
6:56 pm Feb 5th, 2013looks fun text for free at
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