Brown Sugar Toffee Shortbread
I love to bake all kinds of cookies, but I often turn to shortbread when I want something quick, easy, and crowd-pleasing. These Brown Sugar Toffee Shortbread certainly check all of those boxes. They feature simple flavors in a simple recipe. And they’re always such a hit!
The starting point of these cookies is a fairly basic shortbread made with plenty of brown sugar. To that, toffee bits and a hint of cinnamon provide a wonderful flavor. These should really come with a warning because they’re so addictive!
With as much baking as I do, I have the basics on hand almost all of the time. If you bake even somewhat frequently, then you’re likely to have everything you need to make these cookies whenever you want to whip up a batch. I love the toffee bits in them to amplify all of that brown sugar, but you can easily substitute something else (like chopped nuts or chocolate) if needed.
As easy as shortbread is to make, it can also be a bit temperamental. Just be careful to measure your ingredients accurately and it will go smoothly. Shortbread dough is characteristically crumbly, but it will hold together when you pinch it. I almost always finish mixing shortbread dough by hand, which helps it to hold together better.
I use a simple round fluted cookie cutter to cut out these cookies. My limited kitchen space means I don’t have much variety in the cookie cutter department, but you can certainly use other shapes for these cookies if you like. Just keep in mind that changing the size and shape will alter the number of cookies you get from the recipe.
If you love the flavor of brown sugar, then these Brown Sugar Toffee Shortbread aren’t to be missed. The addition of toffee just makes them even better. I love these little guys for everything from a cookie swap to an everyday treat!
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Brown Sugar Toffee Shortbread
Yield: about 36 cookies
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes per pan
Brown Sugar Toffee Shortbread pack a lot of flavor in a small package. A great simple recipe that’s sure to please!
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 & 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup toffee bits
Directions:
- Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy.
- Reduce mixer speed to low. Add the flour, cinnamon, and salt, and mix just until combined. Mix in the toffee bits. The dough will be crumbly but should hold together when pinched.
- Gather the dough into a thin disc. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
- Place the dough on a lightly floured surface. Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness.
- Use a 2-inch round cookie cutter (or any cutter of your choice) to cut out the cookies. Gather and re-roll the dough once and continue cutting out the cookies.
- Place the cookies on the prepared pan, leaving about 2 inches between cookies. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until the cookies are browned.
- Cool on the pans for 5 minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
I love these! They sound simply delicious, and I will definitely try them soon!
These look delicious. I must try them.
This dough just did not work for me. It would not hold together. Does it need more butter?
Hello! The recipe ratios are correct. It’s possible you have too much flour. Be sure you’re measuring it accurately with the spoon and sweep method or by weighing it. Here’s more info on accurately measuring flour.
I actually went back and added a few tablespoons of butter and mixed it in well – that worked.
Oooh I bet the brown sugar and toffee complement the butteriness of the shortbread so well!
Needs a bit higher butter to flour ratio, especially if your flower is very dry (e.d. Cooking in the Arctic)
Humidity (or lack thereof) can certainly affect baking.
Sorry, the golden rule of shortbread is 1/2/3. That is, one measure of sugar to two measures butter, to three measures of flour. Your ratios are off, which is why the recipe isn’t working well. 1/2 cup sugar means 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, and no more than 1.5 cups flour, including rice flour or cornstarch (to lower protein sufficiently and increase “shortness”). 1 cup flour (120 grams) and 1/2 cup rice flour would be perfect. If your readers try that their shortbread will melt in their mouths – which is surely the goal. 🙂
Hello! Thanks for your insights. That ratio is certainly one that works, especially for shortbread baked in a pan. For rolling out the dough, I’ve relied on this recipe or a variation of it for many years, and it hasn’t failed me yet.
Does “all purpose flour” mean plain flour, or can I use self-rising flour? Thanks
Hi, Jackie. You’ll need all-purpose or plain flour. Self-rising has a leavening agent and salt added to it.
I baked these cookies for the minimum bake time. Got only 24 cookies from recipe and they are brick hard. Taste is good but milder than expected. Guess they are good dunkersor hockey pucks.
Hey Betty, if you put your cookies in an airtight container with a piece of bread the bread will make your cookies soft!!
I just made these and they came out…ok? They taste fine but maybe I added too much flour because they’re a little floury tasting. Definitely not very sweet at all but they held their shape nicely when I used a dinosaur cutter.
The toffee bits along the edges of my cookies tended to melt more than in the middle and so my edges aren’t nearly as clean as yours… any suggestions?
Hi, Jackie. There’s no way to keep the toffee bits from melting. You can see some around the edges in the cookies in my photos. If there’s a lot of toffee that’s spread out from the cookie, you can always trim that a bit if you like.
These are delicious but almost impossible to roll out. I will add more butter or less flour next time. I doubled it and rolled out (laboriously) the half the dough. The second half I’ll pat into a baking dish.
Certainly check all of my boxes too 🙂 Thank you !
Can you substitute coconut flour in this?
Hi, Amy. I’ve never baked with coconut flour, so I can’t give you a definitive answer. I’d recommend following the manufacturer’s guidelines for substitution. If you try it, let me know how it works!
I love brown sugar and toffee bits. I will certainly be trying these. Thanks for sharing
These are wonderful cookies! Followed the recipe and had no problems. Not a sweet cookie, more like a tea cookie as in a light flavor. Mine were crispy in the edges, soft in the middle, just how I like them. I used a 3″ cutter and it yielded 18 cookies. I will definitely make these again!
Just made these and they are wonderful. I rolled balls and pressed them down like peanut butter cookies.