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Brown Sugar Maple Shortbread Cookies

Brown sugar maple shortbread cookies bake into buttery rounds with lightly golden edges and tender, set centers. Chill the dough for an hour before rolling and cutting it into 2-inch cookies.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 22 minutes
Chilling and resting 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 47 minutes
Servings: 24 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 132
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 0.5 cup light brown sugar packed
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup pure
  • 1 tsp maple extract
  • 2.25 cups all-purpose flour
  • 0.5 tsp kosher salt

Equipment

  • 1 large baking sheet
  • 1 electric mixer

Method
 

  1. Heat the oven to 325°F.
  2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  3. Beat the softened butter and packed light brown sugar in a large bowl until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes.
  4. Beat in the pure maple syrup and maple extract.
  5. Add the all-purpose flour and kosher salt and mix on low just until a soft dough forms.
  6. Shape the dough into a disk, wrap it, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  7. Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/2-inch thickness and cut into 2-inch rounds, gathering and rerolling scraps as needed.
  8. Arrange the rounds about 1 inch apart and keep them chilled while the first batch bakes.
  9. Bake in batches for 18–22 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden and the centers look set.
  10. Let the baking sheet cool between batches.
  11. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
  12. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes

For tender cookies, mix the flour in only until a soft dough forms. Store the cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week, or freeze baked cookies for up to 2 months. For a gluten-free option, use a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour.