Vanilla Bean White Chocolate Shortbread
Tender vanilla bean shortbread shaped into festive stars, dipped in white chocolate, and sprinkled with gold sanding sugar. Ring in the new year with these simple yet addicting cookies!
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Happy Boxing Day! I hope your Christmas was wonderful. And if it wasn’t, I hope you are able to have a peaceful, hopeful last week of 2022 and that 2023 is good to you.
Speaking of ringing in the new year…these cookies are the easiest last-minute festive dessert! I had plans to make something champagne themed, but time got away from me. Isn’t it funny how that happens during the holidays? I always think I’ll have so much extra time since I’m off of work, but that’s never the case.
So, instead, I made one of my easiest recipes: shortbread. But not just any shortbread—vanilla bean shortbread. I cut them into stars, dipped them in white chocolate, and sprinkled them with gold sugar.
And they were New Years Eve perfection.
Not only are the festive looking, they taste delicious. This shortbread is always a hit, and the vanilla bean just adds extra flavor. Plus, I love dipping these cookies in chocolate of any kind. White chocolate just felt more festive, especially against the black vanilla bean flecks. Plus, it adds a lightly sweet, vanilla-y taste and some texture. And the gold sugar! You gotta have gold at New Years. And it adds even more crunch, which rounds these cookies out perfectly in taste and appearance.
They may be my favorite New Years cookies yet.
Why this recipe works
My basic shortbread is so amazing because of confectioner’s sugar (i.e. icing sugar or powdered sugar). I’ve found that shortbread recipes using granulated sugar or brown sugar leave little crystals that may not dissolve in the mixing and baking process. It’s fine and all, but not ideal for a tender shortbread. Confectioner’s sugar is already fine, meaning you’ll get a smooth, fluffy dough without any large sugar crystals. And while some recipes call for beating the sugar until nearly dissolved, I’ve found that to be 1. often impossible and 2. too much air in the dough for the delicate, crumbly cookie we want.
Additionally, confectioner’s sugar has a small bit of cornstarch. Cornstarch is that secret rising agent that gives just a slight poof. It keeps these cookies from being dense yet isn’t powerful enough (like baking powder/soda) to make them rise like a chocolate chip cookie. It creates that perfect in-between rise.
As well, European style butter is a game changer. I say this all the time in my recipes. Try to use European style butter if you can, as it has far less water and is a MUCH creamier butter, making softer, more tender cookies. I get Kerrygold from Costco (in fact, it keeps going on sale and now we have at least 18 pounds in our fridge for all my summer baking…). But any European style butter will do. I often use salted butter, meaning I only add a pinch of salt. This is because I know Kerrygold and know how salty it will make my dessert. If you’re using a different brand or are unsure, try to use unsalted so you can better control the salt.
This particular variation is ideal because of the vanilla bean, which gives those lovely (and NYE-festive) black flecks and deep vanilla flavor, and the white chocolate, which adds a bit of texture and extra flavor. Plus, you just can’t beat the sparkle of the gold sanding sugar. Black and white and gold? It really is the perfect easy New Years Eve dessert.
Key ingredients
Butter. As mentioned above, always use European style butter in shortbread. It’s creamier and has less water.
Confectioner’s sugar. This is the secret to the tender texture and perfect sweetness of these cookies.
Vanilla bean paste. This is optional in most shortbread but necessary in this recipe. It adds flavor as well as a festive sparkle.
Salt. Only use a pinch or so if using salted butter.
Flour. Optionally, you can sift this before using, making the cookies even more tender and delicate.
White chocolate. You could optionally use white candy melts—use what you have on hand.
Gold sanding sugar. This makes these cookies. It adds a bit of crunch and a lot of sparkle.
How to make vanilla bean white chocolate shortbread
1. Cream butter and powdered sugar. You don’t need to beat it for a long time, just make sure it’s well-combined and perfectly smooth.
2. Add vanilla bean paste and salt. Reduce salt to a pinch if you used salted butter. Be sure it’s very smooth so that the flour can be mixed in minimally.
3. Stir in flour. Technically, you could sift and whisk the salt and flour, but that requires an extra bowl, and I just don’t have the patience for more dishes.
Optional: You can chill the dough at this point, for 1 hour or up to 3 days, to make it easier to work with.
4. Roll out and cut. I prefer rolling these out between parchment paper before cutting out into stars. Don’t roll the dough too thin—somewhere between 1/8” and 1/4” is perfect.
5. Bake. I froze my dough for a few minutes before baking to ensure the cookies kept their shape.
6. Dip in (or drizzle with) melted white chocolate. I dipped my small stars straight into the bowl then poured the rest into a piping bag with just a small bit snipped off the end to drizzle the large ones, but you could use a spoon or knife to drizzle yours, or just dip them all. I just liked the idea of variety.
Enjoy!
Tips and FAQ’s for this recipe
What do I serve this with?
Anything! This is perfect with coffee or tea. Or just to keep on the counter for a quick little something sweet. You can also make shortbread sandwiches with ganache or buttercream filling. The possibilities are endless!
Do I have to use European butter?
Personally, I think it makes a huge difference. It’s creamier and has a very different consistency than sweet cream butter. Since you only have a few ingredients here, you want to make sure each one is of the highest quality. But don’t worry—you can often find it at places like Costco on sale!
What if I don’t have powdered sugar?
You can technically make your own, but I can’t vouch for its efficacy in cookies (it works well in buttercream). Simply place 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon cornstarch in a blender and mix until fine—the texture of powdered/confectioner’s/icing sugar. You can of course increase the amount, but this will give you more than you need already.
Do NOT over mix!
These will become tough and lose their flaky tenderness if you mix them too much. Be careful to stir just until the dough comes together then stop. If you find any unmixed flour, you can pat that into the rest of the dough when you roll it out.
Is the white chocolate necessary?
No, but why would you want to skip it??? You can definitely omit it, but there’s something extra special about the white chocolate. Plus, it helps keep them fresh longer as it seals in the cookie. However, if you want to use regular chocolate or would prefer these without any, that’s absolutely fine! They taste ah-mazing plain.
Can I make these ahead of time?
Yes! You can make the dough and refrigerate it (well sealed) for up to three days. If you need to make them further ahead, you can shape them then freeze them. Freeze on a cookie sheet then transfer to a well-sealed container or freezer safe bag once they’re solid. They’ll last in the freezer 2-3 months.
My tools
Here are my must-have tools I use for making these cookies. Affiliate links provided.
Mesh sieve (because sifting is KEY for a perfect shortbread)
Rimmed cookie sheets (for pre-shaped cookies)
Silicone baking mats or parchment paper (for baking and rolling the dough)
Disposable piping bags (for drizzling the white chocolate)
Vanilla Bean White Chocolate Shortbread
- prep time: 10-15 minutes
- bake time: 10-15 minutes (depending on cookie size)
- total time: 30 minutes
servings: 20-30 cookies
Ingredients:
- 2 cups (272g) flour, spooned and leveled then sifted
- ¼ teaspoon (2g) finely ground sea salt (omit if using salted butter)
- 1 cup (227g) unsalted European style butter, softened
- ⅔ cup (87g) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon (21g) vanilla bean paste
- 6 ounces (170g or 1 cup) white chocolate chips (or white candy melts)
- gold sanding sugar
- star cookie cutters
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Prepare your baking pan/sheet. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer--I couldn't use mine because it does best with larger quantities), whip the butter with a handheld electric mixer on high until creamed, about 30 seconds. Add the sugar and mix on high until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Add vanilla bean paste then mix, starting on low then increasing to high to fully incorporate.
- Scrape the bowl then sift in the flour and mix on low until fully incorporated, scraping the bowl if necessary. It will be crumbly at first then will suddenly start to stick to the beaters and pull away from the sides of the bowl. At this point, stop mixing.
- Optional: you could chill the dough for 1 hour or overnight at this point, to make rolling easier. Otherwise, use some flour as you roll these out to prevent sticking.
- Roll to about ¼ inch (or slightly less) thick. Cut into stars. Roll the scraps back out and cut again. Once you have just a small amount of scraps, you can shape that into a couple round cookies.
- Bake 10-12 minutes (up to 15 for larger cookies), until the edges just begin to turn golden. Let cool on the pan for 5-10 minutes then remove the cookies to a wire rack until completely cool.
- While cookies cool, melt your white chocolate. You can use the microwave at half power in 30 second increments or a double boiler (which for me is just a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan with 1” of simmering water over low heat). With a double boiler, stir constantly until the white chocolate is mostly melted then remove from heat and stir until smooth.
- Either gently dip half of a cookie (just the top side–it may break if you try to dip the whole cookie) into the melted white chocolate or drizzle some on each cookie. Sprinkle immediately with gold sanding sugar.
- Let the white chocolate cool completely before serving.
Enjoy! Cookies will last in an airtight container for 3-5 days.
