Crystallized Ginger Shortbread
on Dec 04, 2014, Updated Oct 31, 2024
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When butter meets crystallized ginger, wonderful things happen. An easy and flavorful bar cookie recipe that's super easy.
I come from a long and proud line of ginger fans, and while my gingersnaps are a perennial holiday must, I was just in the mood to celebrate butter as well. What can one say about butter? Everything good. In cooking, I am an equal opportunity fat player — oils, butter, different things for different dishes. When it comes to baking, I have my allegiance: Butter. And there are few cookies that are more buttery than classic shortbread.
These beautiful ginger shortbread cookies will make a great addition to any cookie table, alongside Nut-Free Snowball Cookies, Soft Pumpkin Cookies, and Peppermint Bark Haystack Cookies. They’re also an easy bake sale recipe option.
Table of Contents
Crystallized Ginger Shortbread: The chewy nuggets of crystallized ginger are the perfect flavor and texture contrast to the sweet, buttery, tender shortbread.
I started envisioning these cookies, wondering what I should bring to the annual cookie swap at work. If you’ve never been part of a cookie swap, find a way to fix that and fast. It is one of life’s charming pleasures to bring a big batch or two of homemade cookies somewhere, trade most of them away, and leave with an assortment of goodies that amounts to WAY more than you would ever have endeavored to do on your own.
These are sort of bar cookies, small squares of shortbread that beg to be nibbled with a cup of coffee or mug of tea. I figured two per serving, but I would very much understand if that didn’t seem sufficient. I love the texture of these — crumbly and buttery at the same time. What luxury. And the little nuggets of crystallized ginger are chewy and just ideal with the simple flavor of the cookie dough.
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter – Butter provides both the lovable, supple texture and the delicious flavor of shortbread.
- Granulated Sugar – For a balanced sweetness and great texture.
- Pure vanilla extract – For that vanilla flavor.
- Salt – Enhances all the flavors.
- All-purpose flour – Provides the structure.
- Crystallized ginger – Finely chopped for the most irresistible pockets of sweet chewiness and spiciness. You may also use candied ginger.
Kitchen Smarts
If you want a more intense ginger flavor, add 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger to the butter mixture.
How to Make Crystalized Ginger Shortbread
- Cream together the ingredients: With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar. On low speed, beat in the salt, then the flour, and then the vanilla. Finally, beat in the crystallized ginger.
- Assemble and chill: Press the dough into a square baking pan. Score the top with a sharp knife into 36 small squares. Place the pan in the freezer for 20 minutes or in the fridge for at least an hour.
- Bake and cut: Bake for about 40 minutes minutes at 300 degrees F. Remove the cookies to a wire rack and cool for 20 to 30 minutes. Carefully flip the shortbread and place it on a cutting board, using a large sharp knife cut into squares following the lines you scored in the dough before baking.
Make Ahead and Storage
- You can make the shortbread dough and let it chill in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- You can freeze both the unbaked and baked shortbread dough for up to 3 months. Thaw the unbaked shortbread overnight in the refrigerator before baking.
- The baked shortbread will stay well in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
What to Serve With Crystalized Ginger Shortbread
More Easy Cookie Recipes
- Snickerdoodles
- Big Fat Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
- Chewy Molasses Cookies
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Crystallized Ginger Shortbread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter (at room temperature)
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour (plus more for dusting the counter)
- ¾ cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 F.
- In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar. Beat in the salt, then the flour, and then the vanilla. Finally, beat in the crystallized ginger. The dough will appear crumbly but then hold together when you pinch it.
- Press the dough into an 8-inch square baking pan so that the top is flat and the dough is even. Score the top with a sharp knife into 36 small squares. Place the pan in the freezer for 20 minutes or in the fridge for at least an hour until it firms up slightly.
- Bake for about 40 minutes minutes, until just very slightly colored; the edges will be just a bit browned. Remove the cookies to a wire rack and cool for 20 to 30 minutes. Carefully flip the shortbread, turn it right side up, and cool completely on the rack out of the pan.
- Place the shortbread on a cutting board and, using a large sharp knife, cut squares following the lines you scored in the dough before baking.
Notes
- You can make the shortbread dough and let it chill in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- You can freeze both the unbaked and baked shortbread dough for up to 3 months. Thaw the unbaked shortbread overnight in the refrigerator before baking.
- If you want a more intense ginger flavor, add 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger to the butter mixture.
- The baked shortbread will stay well in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Made this today for a women’s luncheon, everyone loved it, I did add a pinch of powdered ginger. I also baked it for about 33 min, so it was still a bit moist in center. Perfect!
Good shortbread cookie. Having made a few batches of similar cookies, these suggestions: chill the dough for ten-twenty minutes in the fridge; it will make it easier to cut the cookies and move them to the cookie sheet. Roll the dough kinda thick—maybe 3/16”–1/4”; it will make a “toothier” cookie—moist, with only a thin browned bottom crust. Watch them in the oven very closely; remove them from the oven when the are only the slightest bit brown at the edges.
Finally, maybe add a teaspoon or two of ginger powder to the mix? Would make the flavor just a little sharper.
thanks! I actually just changed this to make it a pan shnortbread cookie, which makes the cutting cookies easier. and I love the idea of adding powdered ginger – defintiely would make them sharper.
The best shortbread recipe and agreed powdered ginger improves them, just put my 6th batch in to take to a friend for coffee Easter Friday. If I dare say it they even outdo the CWA and they are some of the best in the world!
Thanks so much for the tip of adding extra ginger powder, Steve. These are amazing! I’m excited to make these again & again!