Flower Shaped Shortbread Cookies (Printable)

Delicate, buttery flower-shaped shortbread perfect for springtime celebrations and teatime moments.

# What You Need:

→ Shortbread Dough

01 - 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
02 - 1/2 cup granulated sugar
03 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
04 - 1/4 cup cornstarch
05 - 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
06 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

→ Decoration

07 - 2 tablespoons coarse sanding sugar or colored sprinkles, optional
08 - 1/4 cup powdered sugar for dusting, optional
09 - Edible flower petals or pastel icing, optional

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
02 - In a large mixing bowl, cream softened butter and granulated sugar together until light and fluffy, approximately 3-4 minutes.
03 - Mix vanilla extract into the creamed butter mixture until fully incorporated.
04 - In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt.
05 - Gradually add dry ingredients to the butter mixture, mixing until just combined. Avoid overworking the dough to maintain tenderness.
06 - Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to 1/4-inch thickness.
07 - Using a flower-shaped cookie cutter, cut out cookies and transfer to prepared baking sheets, spacing them 1 inch apart.
08 - Sprinkle with sanding sugar or lightly press edible flower petals into cookies if desired.
09 - Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until edges are just turning golden.
10 - Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
11 - Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar or decorate with pastel icing if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The dough comes together in minutes and requires no chilling, so you can go from craving to cooling rack in under an hour.
  • Buttery, delicate, and impossibly crisp, these cookies taste like they took hours but honestly barely demand your attention.
  • They're forgiving enough for kitchen novices but fancy enough to impress at a spring gathering or tucked into a gift box.
02 -
  • Overworked dough is your only real enemy here—mix just until the streaks of flour disappear, then stop immediately, because ten more seconds of stirring can shift these from melt-in-your-mouth to disappointingly tough.
  • The cornstarch is essential and not interchangeable with more flour, so if you skip it or substitute it, you lose the signature tender crumb that makes shortbread special.
03 -
  • Use a kitchen scale for flour and cornstarch if you have one, because scooping can vary by up to 10% and throws off the texture balance that makes these cookies special.
  • If your dough cracks when you try to cut shapes, it's likely too cold—let it sit at room temperature for five minutes between rolling and cutting, and it'll behave beautifully.
Go Back