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A super simple Scottish Shortbread Cookie recipe, these Shortbread Cookie Sticks are super easy for the kids to help make and make an adorable gift for the holidays!

Shortbread Cookie Sticks Recipe

I don’t know what it is about cookie sticks, but my kids can’t get enough of them. Probably something to do with that 2 or 3 cookie sticks is equal to a single shortbread cookie, so I tend to let them have more than one at a time – or maybe it’s because they are the perfect size for dipping in hot chocolate, tea or coffee.

For this recipe, I used our Classic Scottish Shortbread Cookie dough and cut it into smaller strips for easy decorating and gifting. It’s buttery, tender yet crisp with that crumbly, dense texture that makes shortbread such a good pairing with a hot beverage.

With just 5 ingredients (8 if you include the cookie decorations), this recipe is incredibly quick and easy to make – which is a welcome treat during the busy holiday season.

Since this recipe yields so many cookies, I let the kids have fun decorating about 10 each and still have more than 40 cookies left.

10 Tips for Perfect Shortbread

1. Use good-quality butter and don’t substitute with margarine. You want a butter that you enjoy the flavour of because it will form the basis of most of the shortbread’s flavour.
2. Use room temperature butter that has been sitting out for a few hours or overnight. Don’t use any hacks like grating or microwaving the butter as you will end up with an over-worked dough.
3. Cream the butter and sugar together until very light colored, as you want the sugar to really dissolve well.
4. If desired, you can replace a bit of the all-purpose flour with rice flour to give the cookies a lighter texture, but don’t go over replacing half of the flour or the dough will be frustratingly delicate.
5. You can chill the dough twice, and it’s a good idea if you’ve spent too much time rolling out the dough or have been distracted. You want the butter to be cold when it goes into the oven so it doesn’t spread or overcook – plus refrigeration helps develop the flavour.
6. If doing a second chill, it doesn’t need to be for long and you don’t need to cover the dough – in fact, leaving the dough uncovered for 20-30 minutes in your fridge will help dry out the butter a bit and help the cookies become a bit more light and crisp with baking.
7. Ensure that all of the cookies are as close to the same size as possible to ensure even baking. An easy way to do that with thumbprint cookies is to use a cookie scoop or a tablespoon to portion out the dough before rolling and imprinting.
8. When rolling out shortbread, try not to overwork the dough as it will result in tough cookies.
9. Also, use a sheet of parchment or wax paper in between your rolling pin and your dough to prevent the dough from sticking or tearing with rolling.
10. You don’t want any browning in the baked cookies – you just want them to be light and set. The minute one cookie starts to show some cracks, the cookies are done.

Shortbread Cookie Sticks FAQs

How to store shortbread cookies: Shortbread cookies can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or kept in the fridge for 10 days.

To freeze shortbread cookies, use parchment or wax paper in between layers of the shortbread and store in an airtight freezer bag or your favourite freezer containers (this set of freezer containers is a crazy bargain). Enjoy within 3 months of freezing.

How long in advance can I make shortbread cookie dough? Shortbread cookie dough can be made in advance by either keeping the dough in the fridge for a week, or in the freezer for a month.

What is the difference between butter cookies and shortbread cookies? Butter cookies are made using more sugar and less butter than shortbread cookies, so butter cookies are firmer in texture and have a sweeter flavor than crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth shortbread cookies.

Ingredients for Shortbread Cookie Sticks

• Butter, softened
• White Sugar
• Vanilla Extract
• All-Purpose Flour
• Salt

For Cookie Decorating:

• White chocolate
• Green Food coloring <– this set of food coloring has lasted me forever and I love that it creates highly saturated colors with just a drop
• Sprinkles

Scroll down to the printable recipe card for full measurements.

Kitchen Tools You May Find Helpful

• Measuring cups and spoons
• Mixing bowl
• Electric mixer <– this is a great hand mixer if you don’t want to make the investment into a stand mixer
• Parchment Paper
• Cookie Sheets
• Cooling racks <– I have and love these tiered cooling racks, they save so much counter space and are also oven-safe
• Small bowl
• Rolling Pin

How to Make Shortbread Cookie Sticks

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking sheets.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in salt and vanilla extract.

Slowly beat in the flour until just incorporated.

Roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/3″ then use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into 1″ squares or 3″ x 1″ rectangles.

Place the cut cookies on the prepared baking sheets and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350.

Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes.

Once the cookies have cooled, melt the white chocolate by heating in 30-second increments in the microwave, stirring in between each heating. Add the green dye to the chocolate.

Decorate the cookies by making a tree-shaped squiggle on the cookies and then adding sprinkles. I added a star sprinkle to the top and a long green sprinkle to the bottom to help further suggest the tree shape.

Pin this Easy Shortbread Cookie Sticks recipe for your Christmas cookie exchanges or baking sessions:

Grab your free printable recipe card for our Shortbread Cookie Sticks recipe:

I hope your family loves these easy shortbread cookie sticks as much as mine do!

For more scrumptious cookies, check out our full cookie recipe collection here:

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