SHORTBREAD CHRISTMAS COOKIES

Cream butter and sugar. Mix until pale, fluffy, and creamy. This helps create that soft shortbread texture.

Add vanilla — it gives warmth without overpowering the butteriness.

Mix flour + cornflour together, and then Add to wet ingredients and mix slowly. Stop as soon as the dough comes together. Over mixing leads to tough shortbread.

Chill the dough – Wrap the dough in clingfilm or greaseproof paper and chill for some10 minutes. This firms up the butter and keeps the cookie shapes beautifully sharp.

Roll out to 8 mm thickness. I use an adjustable rolling pin for even baking. Dust your surface lightly with flour or roll between two sheets of baking paper. I prefer the baking sheet method so I don't add too much flour to the cookie mix which might toughen the cookie. Cut using your favourite Christmas cutters. My cutters are usually between 6 to 8 cm tall. So smaller cutters will give you more cookies and larger less. Stars, snowflakes, candy canes, angels — anything goes! If you don’t have cutters, you can use a glass and cut rounds.

Transfer to a lined baking sheet, and chill the cut shapes for 10 minutes. A second chill prevents spreading and gives crisp, clean edges.

Bake at 170°C for 10 to 12 minutes. You might need to adjust timing if your cutters are smaller or larger. Usually, a couple of minutes up or down will do . Bake until the edges are just starting to turn the palest gold. Shortbread should stay light and delicate.

Cool completely on the baking tray. They firm up as they cool — don’t move them too early.

Flavour Variations (just adding subtle flavour twists.) Lemon shortbread: add zest of 1 lemon. Orange spice: orange zest + a pinch of cinnamon. Vanilla almond: add ½ tsp almond extract. Chocolate chip shortbread: fold in mini chips gently. Measure with your heart.

Decorate them. Let your imagination run free. Royal icing snowflakes – pipe delicate white lines for a frosty look. Icing sugar and milk mixed to a toothpaste consistency. If you don’t have a piping bag, use a zip and seal bag. Cut one of the edges really small to begin with; you can always cut again, but if you overdo it. You’ll have to start over. Melted butter painted lightly onto your cookies followed by a sprinkle of sugar and cinnamon on top. Chocolate-dipped edges – dip half the cookie in melted chocolate. Add sprinkles. Festive sanding sugar – sprinkle red, green, or gold sugar before baking. Embossed designs – use cookie stamps dipped in cocoa for a rustic Christmas look. White chocolate drizzle + crushed candy cane – sweet, crunchy, and festive. Edible glitter dust – a magical finishing touch!

Cosykitchencorner Tips - For perfect shortbread every time: I prefer using caster sugar for this recipe. Icing sugar makes a denser cookie whilst granulated sugar gives a more crispier bake. Don’t overwork the dough — handle it gently for maximum crumbliness. Always chill before baking — especially if you’re using detailed cutters. Try freezing for 10 mins before baking. Bake light — pale shortbread is tender; darker edges mean it’s overdone. Store in a tin for up to two weeks — flavour deepens beautifully. Freeze the dough — rolls or sheets freeze brilliantly for last-minute baking.

Here are some I made with my granddaughter