Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookie Dippers are the perfect companion for a warm cup of coffee or cold glass of milk. These shortbread cookies are buttery, tender, and filled with chocolate chips. Plus, you need only 5 ingredients for this quick and easy cookie recipe.
You're going to love this recipe for chocolate chip shortbread cookie dippers because they're easy to make, with only 5 ingredients needed.
Plus, they're incredibly buttery, tender, and filled with chocolate chips. What's not to love?
Sliced into bars, they're the perfect pairing with a cup of coffee, tea, or a cold glass of milk. Or, use cookie cutters to make any shape or size you'd like!
Shortbread cookie texture
Shortbread cookies, while having a short ingredient list, can be difficult to master. If you've never had a shortbread cookie before, they have a different texture than a regular chocolate chip cookie.
Shortbread cookies are buttery, tender, and delicate. They don't contain any leavening agents, so these cookies are dense and won't puff up in the oven.
Properly measuring your flour
The most important part about making cookies (this applies to ANY recipe!) is the proper measuring of ingredients - especially the flour.
I highly recommend using the metric measurements listed in the recipe card and measure using a kitchen scale. This ensures a 100% accurate measurement every time.
To properly measure flour using measuring cups, spoon the flour into your measuring cup, then level off with a knife.
If you scoop directly from your flour container using the measuring cup, this compacts the flour into your cup, adding up to 25% extra flour to your recipe.
Extra flour causes shortbread dough to be crumbly, or chocolate chip cookie dough to be 'cakey'.
Ingredients and substitutions
Unsalted butter and salt can be substituted with salted butter.
Mini chocolate chips can be omitted for a more traditional shortbread cookie, or replaced with another flavor of baking chips or sprinkles.
Confectioner's sugar can be substituted with granulated sugar. For ¾ cup of confectioner's sugar, use ½ cup of granulated sugar.
Confectioner's sugar vs. granulated sugar
This recipe has been updated as of 3/6/2021. My previous recipe used granulated sugar. I now recommend using confectioner's sugar instead.
I decided to make the switch to confectioner's sugar because readers were continually having issues with the dough looking dry and crumbly and the cookies not holding their shape when baked.
I have been unable to replicate these issues, and have made this recipe dozens of times with granulated sugar. However, when I switched to confectioner's sugar, I found that the dough was easier to work with, it held together more easily, and the cookies spread slightly less in the oven.
Texture of shortbread dough
First, you'll cream together your butter and sugar. Then, you'll add your salt and all-purpose flour. This may be difficult to do by hand - I like to use a hand mixer for this reason. Your dough will be very thick and crumbly.
While mixing, it will take a while for your butter and flour to combine. If it looks very crumbly and dry, but you can see chunks of butter that aren't yet mixed in - keep mixing. I promise, your dough will come together.
Grab a bit of dough and pinch it together with your hands. If the dough sticks together and holds its shape, your dough is the proper texture.
Chilling your cookie dough
Your dough needs to be chilled in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes (or more) before rolling it out. After rolling and cutting into bars, I also like to refrigerate my cookies again before baking.
A chilled dough will spread less in the oven and your cookie bars will keep their shape, spreading only very slightly.
What to serve with shortbread cookies
Shortbread cookies are tender, buttery, and not too sweet. The perfect companion for a cup of coffee or tea!
- Coffee
- Tea
- Hot Chocolate
- Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate
- Milk
Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookie Dippers
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ¾ cup confectioner's sugar *
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add butter and mix with a hand mixer until creamed and fluffy. Add sugar and mix until creamed and fluffy, about a minute. In a separate bowl, sift together the dry ingredients - flour and salt.
- Add dry ingredients to butter mixture and mix with a hand mixer until ingredients are fully incorporated, about 1-2 minutes. Your dough will be very thick and crumbly, but holds its shape when pinched between two fingers (shortbread dough does not come together like regular chocolate chip cookie dough).
- Add mini chocolate chips and mix into your dough.
- Shape dough into a disc and wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Dust counter top and rolling pin with flour, then roll dough to ¼" thickness. Cut off rounded edges, leaving you with a large square or rectangle. Slice dough into long rectangles, about 1 inch by 4 inches. Place on baking sheet. - If your dough has been out of the refrigerator for a long time at room temperature, I recommend placing the entire baking sheet back in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to chill your cookies before baking. This will help your cookies spread less in the oven.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until cookies begin to lightly brown around edges. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing from the baking sheet. Shortbread cookies are very delicate straight from the oven, and need time to cool and firm up.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- *Confectioner's sugar can be substituted with granulated sugar. Substitute ¾ cup of confectioner's sugar with ½ cup of granulated sugar. My original recipe used granulated sugar, but I find confectioner's sugar easier to work with in shortbread dough.
- Cookies will keep for 5-7 days in a sealed container. To help keep cookies fresh, place a slice of bread in the container with the cookies. Replace the bread slice as needed.
- Raw dough will keep in the refrigerator for 3 days. If dough has been refrigerated for more than 30 minutes, allow to warm up at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before rolling out.
- Cookie dough and baked cookies freeze well, up to 3 months in a sealed plastic container or freezer bag.
Tammy
Are these cookies soft or crunchy, I like a lightly crunchy cookie, like a sugar cookie consistency, 😊
Heather
Hi Tammy, shortbread cookies are dense (they have no leavening agents to make them puff up in the oven) and turn out tender and delicate once baked. They're not crunchy, but have a soft, tender, and buttery texture.
Karen
I had to google grams from cups and the mix seemed crumbly. But I did the fridge once on the tray, I spaced mine out, just as well they did grow a bit. Wow so tasty! We will definitely make these again! Trust the process x
Heather
I'm so glad you enjoyed the cookies! If you click on 'metric' in the recipe card (directly below the ingredients list) it will show you all of the ingredients in grams, for the future.
Debi
This is not an easy recipe but it's worth it. The dough is very crumbly but I was able to make it work. They are soooo good. Definitely worth the effort and I'm sure practice will make it easier!
Lorna
Delicious but not sure why my mixture was never crumbly... it was very soft and not crumbly at all!
Deepti
I just made these and they're so so good! I had to add some oil while kneading because the dough was way too crumbly for me to work with. But they turned out great!!
esra
i love this recipe and also lemon shortbrade cookies ☺only i know this recipe in turkey thats why im lucky 😅
Jen
Gorgeous!
Patti
Can you use a butter substitute? My husband can’t have dairy.
Heather
I haven't tested this recipe with a butter substitute so I can't say for sure. I'd take a look at this recipe which uses a vegan butter, it may work for you!
https://www.noracooks.com/vegan-shortbread-cookies/
Marilyn
These buttery cookies are amazing!!!!