Description
These delightful Christmas Shortbread Bites are buttery, tender, and festive little cookies perfect for holiday celebrations. Made with softened unsalted butter, powdered sugar, almond extract, and a dash of flour and salt, they are topped with colorful Christmas-themed sprinkles for a fun and seasonal touch. Easy to prepare and bake, these bite-sized treats bring joy to any holiday gathering or cookie platter.
Ingredients
Scale
Shortbread Dough
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Decoration
- 3 teaspoons Christmas colored nonpareils
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Heat oven to 325°F. Line an 8 or 9-inch baking dish with plastic wrap or parchment paper and set aside.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a bowl of an electric mixer, combine the softened butter, powdered sugar, and almond extract. Beat until creamy, scraping the bowl often. Turn off the mixer when done.
- Add Flour and Salt: Very gently add the all-purpose flour and kosher salt a little at a time. Beat until the mixture begins to form a dough. Be patient and careful to not overmix.
- Incorporate Sprinkles: Stir in the Christmas colored nonpareils evenly into the dough.
- Form Dough Ball: Knead the dough a few times by hand until it forms into a smooth ball. Place the dough evenly into the prepared pan and gently press throughout the pan.
- Chill Dough: Place the pan in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to chill the dough, which helps in easier cutting and better texture.
- Cut Dough Squares: Remove the pan from the fridge. Using the plastic wrap or parchment paper, lift the dough from the pan onto a cutting board. Cut the dough into ½-inch squares carefully.
- Prepare for Baking: Place the cut squares onto ungreased cookie sheets, spacing them slightly apart.
- Bake Cookies: Bake the cookies for 12 minutes or until they are slightly browned. Watch them closely as they brown quickly.
- Cool and Serve: Remove from oven and let cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- You can substitute almond extract with ½ teaspoon vanilla extract; especially suitable when using an 8x8 inch pan.
- If using salted butter, omit the added kosher salt to balance flavor.
- Double the ingredient quantities and bake in a 9×13 inch pan if you want a larger batch.
- For extra festive touch, sprinkle additional nonpareils on top of the dough before baking.
- Scoop and level your flour using a tablespoon and butter knife for best measuring accuracy.
- Adapt sprinkle colors for different occasions—red and green for Christmas, blue for Hanukkah, red and pink for Valentine’s Day, green for St. Patrick’s Day.
- Try adding chocolate chips for a chocolate chip shortbread variation.
- If you're short on time, you may skip the chilling step, but chilled dough is easier to cut and yields better texture.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 mini cookie
- Calories: 45 kcal
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 15 mg
- Fat: 3 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 1 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 5 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 0.3 g
- Cholesterol: 9 mg
