I’ve always been a sucker for a good pie crust. That buttery, flaky goodness? Chef’s kiss. So, I decided to turn that dream into a reality with these cardamom-spiced shortbread cookies.
Cardamom is one of those spices that just gets it. It’s warm, cozy, and pairs perfectly with a cup of coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. It’s the perfect flavor for the holiday season, or really any time you need a little pick-me-up.
Although very humble with minimal ingredients, the impeccable texture and the amazing buttery flavor will keep you coming back for more.
I hope you enjoy these cookies as much as I do!
Ingredient Notes
Unless your kitchen is super cold, I suggest popping the mixing bowl and the flour in the fridge for 30 mins before grating in the butter.
The entire appeal to these cookies is in the texture which comes from lumps of cold fat that are not fully incorporated into the dough.
To ensure that happens, the dough has to be cold until it’s ready to be baked so the butter doesn’t get the opportunity to melt.
I strongly recommend using cold stick butter, earth balance is my go-to for all vegan baking needs. I’ve heard miyokos is just as good as well.
Margarine or spreadable butters have lower melting point and you won’t get the flaky texture that’s desired.
Recipe Notes
I recommend sticking to the bigger side of the grater. The smaller you grate it, the easier the butter can melt with the warmth of your hands.
Pro tip: Roll your stick of butter in some flour to make it easier to grate.
Once all the butter is grated into the dry mix, give a gentle mix with a rubber spatula before dumping it all onto a sheet of cling wrap.
To gather it all into a ball of dough, bring together the edges of the cling wrap and apply soft pressure until it’s somewhat of an unified mass as shown in the video.
This won’t look like your smooth bread dough, it’s supposed to look crumbly and lumpy.
Chill the dough for atleast 30 mins before rolling it out.
Sandwich the dough between two sheets of parchment paper while rolling it, the dough could get messy and sticky otherwise.
If you’re using different sizes of cookie cutters, bake all the same sized ones together to avoid underbaking the big ones or burning the small ones.
Dust with cardamom sugar as soon as they’re out of the oven- the sugar won’t stick too well once the cookies cool down and enjoy!
cardamom spiced shortcrust cookies
Ingredients
cookies
- 2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar can be swapped with powdered sugar
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup cold butter
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp cardamom
sugar dusting
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp cardamom
Instructions
- In a cold mixing bowl, add all the ingredients for the cookies except for the butter
- Mix all the dry ingredients with a whisk until they are all evenly incorporated
- Grate the cold butter into the mixing bowl, pop the butter in the fridge for a few minutes if you can feel it warming up
- Once all the butter is grated, empty the contents onto a sheet of cling wrap
- Gather the dough together into a ball by bringing together the edges of the cling wrap and applying soft pressure as shown in the video
- Pop this in the fridge for about 30 mins
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ while the dough is chilling
- Sandwich the dough between two sheets of parchment paper and roll it out evenly until it's about 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick
- Cut out your desired shapes using a cookie cutter
- Place them on a baking pan lined with parchment and bake at 350℉ for 10-14 minutes
- Mix the cardamom into sifted powdered sugar to sprinkle once the cookies are baked
- Take the cookies out of the oven and dust with the cardamom sugar while still warm