Copycat Panera Bread Buttery Shortbread Cookie Recipe

Highlights Of This Recipe

• Short chill time: this shortbread cookie dough surprisingly has a short chill time of just 30 minutes. This is great when you need cookies in a hurry, plus who likes to wait hours anyway! If you need, chill the dough for longer and bake later.
• Copycat to Panera Bread: these shortbread cookies taste just like the Panera Bread version. They are thick and buttery, and oh so addicting. If you prefer to make your desserts from scratch, this is the perfect treat for you!
• Great for any occasion: not only are the great for the Valentines Day (hello cute school treat idea) but they are fun for birthdays, Easter, or Christmas! These can be cut into any shape and decorated in a number of different ways, they even make great sandwich cookies.
• Failproof: need a recipe you can count on? This is it, I have made this recipe dozens of times for events and parties and they turn out perfectly each time. I have yet to have my cookies spread or lose their shape. They have a rich, melt-in-your-mouth consistency each time.

Ingredient List & Substitutions

These cookies use simple ingredients, see below for ingredient substitutes if there are any as well as special notes:

• Unsalted Butter: if using salted butter, omit adding more salt later in the recipe. Do not substitute margarine.
• Granulated white sugar: I do not recommend swapping any other type of sugar for this recipe. Other sugars can impact the dough differently and change how the cookie bakes and rises.
• Whole eggs: I like fresh pasture raised farm eggs if available, but any kind will work for this cookie. Let your eggs come to room temperature for this recipe, this helps the eggs incorporate better.
• Extracts: this recipe uses almond extract and vanilla extract, use homemade or store-bought vanilla extract.
• Cream of Tartar: this creates a chewy, slightly cakey texture.
• Baking powder/soda: make sure these are fresh and not expired, after a couple months it will start to lose it’s potency.
• All-purpose flour: no substitution here, other types of flour will change the texture and affect baking differently.

How to Make The Shortbread

Let’s talk a little about how to make the Copycat Panera Bread Buttery Shortbread Cookie Recipe (The printable instructions are in the recipe card below.)

Quick overview:

• Cream butter and sugar. Add in extracts and the egg.
• Mix in dry ingredients, transfer dough to a floured surface.
• Roll out dough and cut into desired size and shape.
• Bake, cool completely, frost if desired.

1. In a small mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Stir to combine.
2. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Add in the vanilla extract, almond extract, and the egg, mix well to combine.,
3. Add in the dry ingredients and mix on low until combined. The dough should be tacky but not too sticky, if it is too sticky add an extra tablespoon or two of flour.

4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and line baking sheets with parchment paper, set aside.

5. Transfer the dough onto a floured surface and roll out to about 1/2″ thick. Cut into desired shapes. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets and chill cookies for 30-60 minutes.

6. Bake chilled cookies for 5-7 minutes* until slightly golden brown, the cookies will still be soft. Allow to cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack.

7. If desired, frost or decorate cookies as desired.

More Holiday Worthy Sweet Treats

• Valentines Chocolate Cupcakes – heart shaped chocolate cupcakes with frosting.
• Easter Monster Cookies – loaded monster cookies with Cadbury eggs.
• One-Bowl Valentine’s Day Cookie Bars – chocolate chip cookie bars with candy hearts.
• Easter M&M’s Cookie Bars – chocolate cookie bars with pastel M&M’s.

Tools I Recommend For The Shortbread

• USA Pan Half Sheet Pan – my go-to sheet pans, these are truly non-stick and clean up nicely.
• Rubber Spatula – a must have! I like these because they don’t come apart so I don’t have to worry about water getting inside the spatula and causing mold.
• Plastic Bench Scraper – I use my plastic dough scrapper all the time, it is perfect for scrapping cookie dough out of a round mixing bowl or off of the counter.
• Cookie Cutters: you always need fun cookie cutters on hand! This set has some of my favorite shapes!

Buttercream or cream cheese frosting can be dyed red with hibiscus powder or beet root powder if you do not want to use food coloring or red dye. This gives a beautiful muted pink color that can be made lighter or darker with the addition of more or less powder. Perfect for Valentines!

Variations & Serving ideas

• Frost with buttercream or powdered sugar icing.
• Create a cookie decorating station with baked cookies, frosting, and different sprinkles.
• Make into sandwich cookies and sandwich with ganache or buttercream.
• Dip in different colored melted chocolate wafers.

Recipe FAQs

How thick should I roll out my cookie dough?

Depending on the texture you desire, cookies are best rolled out between 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch. This creates a thick, somewhat chewy cookie that stands up well to frosting. If you desire a thinner, more crunchy cookie you can roll out thinner. Keep in mind, the thickness of your cookie will impact how many cookies you get per batch.

Is it better to roll cookies out on flour or powdered sugar?

I prefer to use flour, I find it gets less clumpy and lasts through multiple batches of rerolling out the dough. For obvious reasons, flour also doesn’t add the additional sweetness that powdered sugar adds, which I prefer. Either ingredient will work, make sure to use something or your dough will stick!

Should cookie dough be chilled before rolling?

Yes. Dough should be chilled for at least 30 minutes prior to baking if not longer. Chilling cookie dough allows the fat to set up so the cookies don’t spread out to thin while baking. So, chilling is an important step here!

Should I bake shortbread on parchment paper?

I like to bake my shortbread on parchment for a few reasons. The parchment helps ensure the cookies don’t stick, shortbread can be soft and fragile so it helps when they slide right off the pan. The parchment also absorbs some of the fat so the cookies don’t get greasy on the bottom.

How long will baked shortbread stay fresh?

Baked shortbread will stay soft and fresh for 3-4 days at room temperature if stored in an airtight container.

Can I freeze baked shortbread cookies?

Yes! Baked shortbread cookies can be stored in the freezer for a later time. You can freeze your cookies two ways, frosted and unfrosted. Unfrosted cookies can be cooled and store in freezer safe bags and placed in the freezer for 2-3 months. Frosted cookies can be placed in the freezer on a sheet pan to set up then transferred to a freezer safe bag and stored for 1-2 months. Simply remove cookies from the freezer and allow to come to room temperature, frosted cookies will be ready to eat.