This post may contain affiliate links.
A classic treat these Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies have minimal ingredients, use three different chocolates, and are the perfect holiday cookie!
Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies make an appearance at pretty much any holiday party that we go to, mainly because they are delicious and easy.
I love Shortbread Cookies, always have, and always will. We have made them in a variety of different ways over the years but these have to be my favorite.
Those are the best two pairings besides shortbread and chocolate. Literally, this recipe is effortless and comes together in minutes, the only waiting time is for the chocolate to set.
You know, sometimes the waiting is the hardest part of a good recipe like this. You can’t wait to gobble them up!
But sometimes I love the warm gooey chocolate on the cookies and just eat them before they are set because I just simply have no willpower.
I’m sure that some people can relate, right? This also makes a good sized batch of cookies which is great for our family gatherings.
We also do cookie exchanges yearly and these Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies are always in them! How can I not put them in there?
Some of my other favorite cookies we have on our site include: Pecan Sandies, Cinnamon Tea Cakes and Meltaway Almond Cookies.
Jump to:
- WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- INGREDIENTS NEEDED (SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST FOR THE FULL RECIPE CARD):
- HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE DIPPED SHORTBREAD COOKIES:
- FAQ: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS RECIPE:
- WHAT IS THE BEST CHOCOLATE TO USE?
- HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THE COOKIES ARE DONE?
- WHAT SIZE COOKIE CUTTER IS BEST?
- ANY ADDITIONS?
- ANY SUBSTITUTIONS?
- HOW TO STORE:
- DANA’S TIPS AND TRICKS:
- Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- Minimal ingredients help these come together quickly.
- You can use all the chocolates we use or just one.
- Double this recipe to keep more on hand for different occasions or to save for later.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST FOR THE FULL RECIPE CARD):
- Unsalted butter
- Powdered sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Sea salt
- Vanilla
- Dark chocolate
- Milk chocolate
- White chocolate
HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE DIPPED SHORTBREAD COOKIES:
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar for 3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the flour and salt, slowly mix it in until fully combined. Add in the vanilla and mix it in.
- Layout a sheet of parchment paper. Add the dough to the paper, knead it just slightly with your hands so it is workable, but try not to overwork it. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick. Cut out the cookies, try leaving about a 1-inch gap between the cutouts. The cookies puff up and spread out just a little. Remove the excess dough from around the cutout cookies.
- Lift the parchment paper up and place it on a sheet tray. Bake the cookies until they turn the slightest golden brown color, anything more than that, and they are overbaked. Take the tray out of the oven and let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes on the tray. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Once the cookies are cooled, melt the chocolate. Place the dark chocolate into a small bowl, just big enough to dip a cookie into. Place the milk chocolate into a similar bowl.
- Line a sheet tray with parchment paper. Dip the cookies one by one into the chocolate, dip half of the cookies into the dark chocolate, and a half into the milk chocolate. You can dip as much or as little of the cookie into the chocolate as you like, I dipped about ¼ of the edge. Lay the cookies, not touching, onto the lined sheet tray while you dip the rest.
- Let the chocolate cool completely and set onto the cookies, this may take a few hours.
- Once the chocolate is set, melt the white chocolate. Place it into a plastic bag and snip the very tip of one of the corners to make a piping bag. Pipe zig-zag lines over the chocolate. Allow the white chocolate again to set up before serving.
FAQ: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS RECIPE:
WHAT IS THE BEST CHOCOLATE TO USE?
For this recipe we used chocolate melting wafers, they are one of the perfect chocolates for decorating as they melt very well.
You can use all the same chocolate or use all three different ones as we did here. You can also use candiquik or almond bark as well as they also melt nicely.
HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THE COOKIES ARE DONE?
You definitely don’t want to overbake these, but undercooking them will make them be too delicate to dip, you can still eat them but you just can’t dip them.
I suggest cooking them until the tops are a very light golden brown color but nothing more than that.
WHAT SIZE COOKIE CUTTER IS BEST?
We used a 2 1/2-inch scalloped cookie cutter for these, but any cookie cutter will do. You will just need to know how many cookies that you want to make and keep an eye on the baking time if they are larger or smaller.
ANY ADDITIONS?
Think texture along with flavor. Plenty of options!
- Sprinkle flaky sea salt over the melted chocolate before it sets for a sweet and salty finish.
- Add chopped dried cranberries, toffee bits, or crushed candy canes to the chocolate dip for extra flavor.
- Top the chocolate-dipped shortbread cookies with chopped pistachios to turn them into festive dipped pistachio shortbread cookies.
- Drizzle caramel sauce over the set chocolate for a decadent treat.
- Mix in mini chocolate chips into the shortbread dough for chocolate in every bite.
- Pipe festive designs with colored white chocolate after the chocolate sets. Great for a fun group baking day.
- Serve with hot chocolate for the best part of your cozy winter night!
- Cut fun shapes using themed cookie cutters: hearts, stars, or trees are a favorite way to make holidays sweeter.
ANY SUBSTITUTIONS?
Yes, indeed! There are always things we can swap out.
- Swap unsalted butter with salted butter. Just skip the added salt.
- Use semi-sweet chocolate chips in place of the dark or milk chocolate. Melt in a double boiler or in second intervals in the microwave.
- Can’t find powdered sugar? Blend granulated sugar in a food processor until fine.
- If you don’t have a hand mixer, use the paddle attachment on a bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl with a wooden spoon. Just mix on low speed.
- Instead of vanilla extract, try almond extract for a unique twist.
- No plastic wrap? Press the chilled dough into a flat disk and wrap it in parchment paper before chilling.
- Swap milk chocolate with white chocolate for a sweeter dip.
- Can’t find melting wafers? Use baking bars or chocolate chips. Just melt slowly in second intervals and stir frequently.
HOW TO STORE:
ROOM TEMPERATURE: Once fully set you can store these in an airtight container at room temperature where they will keep for up to 5-6 days.
FREEZER: These can also be frozen, we like to freeze before dipping in chocolate but you can freeze with the chocolate as well it just might sweat when it is defrosting.
To freeze, place in a freezer container or bag and they will keep for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature and if you haven’t dipped in chocolate you can proceed to that step.
DANA’S TIPS AND TRICKS:
- The amount of your cookies will depend on the cookie cutter used.
- We like to use melting wafers for these, you can see my tips on that above.
- You can use all three chocolate for this recipe or just choose one.
- Mix-ins can be added such as cranberries, pistachios, toffee and more.
- You can decorate your chocolate with sprinkles or chopped nuts if you desire.
- These can be frozen, see my tips above.
- Traditional shortbread does not use vanilla but we love it so we use it.
If you want a classic treat with a tasty twist then you need to make these Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies ASAP!
If you like this recipe, you might also like:
If you’ve tried these CHOCOLATE DIPPED SHORTBREAD COOKIES let me know in the comments how it turned out! You can follow me over on PINTEREST, INSTAGRAM OR FACEBOOK to find some more of our mouthwatering recipes!
Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 12 ounces unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup melted dark chocolate
- ½ cup melted milk chocolate
- ¼ cup melted white chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar for 3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the flour and salt, slowly mix it in until fully combined. Add in the vanilla and mix it in.
- Layout a sheet of parchment paper. Add the dough to the paper, knead it just slightly with your hands so it is workable, but try not to overwork it. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick. Cut out the cookies, try leaving about a 1-inch gap between the cutouts. The cookies puff up and spread out just a little. Remove the excess dough from around the cutout cookies.
- Lift the parchment paper up and place it on a sheet tray. Bake the cookies until they turn the slightest golden brown color, anything more than that, and they are overbaked. Take the tray out of the oven and let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes on the tray. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Once the cookies are cooled, melt the chocolate. Place the dark chocolate into a small bowl, just big enough to dip a cookie into. Place the milk chocolate into a similar bowl.
- Line a sheet tray with parchment paper. Dip the cookies one by one into the chocolate, dip half of the cookies into the dark chocolate, and a half into the milk chocolate. You can dip as much or as little of the cookie into the chocolate as you like, I dipped about ¼ of the edge. Lay the cookies, not touching, onto the lined sheet tray while you dip the rest.
- Let the chocolate cool completely and set onto the cookies, this may take a few hours.
- Once the chocolate is set, melt the white chocolate. Place it into a plastic bag and snip the very tip of one of the corners to make a piping bag. Pipe zig-zag lines over the chocolate. Allow the white chocolate again to set up before serving.
Notes
- The amount of your cookies will depend on the cookie cutter used.
- We like to use melting wafers for these, you can see my tips on that above.
- You can use all three chocolate for this recipe or just choose one.
- Mix-ins can be added such as cranberries, pistachios, toffee and more.
- You can decorate your chocolate with sprinkles or chopped nuts if you desire.
- These can be frozen, see my tips above.
- Traditional shortbread does not use vanilla but we love it so we use it.
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
Follow @ThisSillyGirlsKitchen on Instagram and @danadevolk on Pinterest for more!
