These copycat Keebler almond shortbread cookies are buttery and filled with almond flavor and crunchy almonds. Homemade Keebler Almond Shortbread cookies are easy to make and taste better than any cookie you could buy in the store.
Who doesn’t love a good cookie, especially when it is a rich and buttery shortbread one with a heavy sprinkling of almonds?
Keebler cookies may be good, but even Ernie and his gang of elves can only dream about baking cookies that can equal the freshness, taste, and texture of the ones you can make with this almond shortbread cookie recipe. Whether you are already a fan of the store brand or not, you and your family won’t be able to get enough of these shortbread cookies.
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So, What are the Secrets of the Scrumpousness?
This recipe is anything but ordinary. Traditional shortbread cookies contain just four basic ingredients: flour, butter, sugar, and salt. The recipe below takes shortbread into an entirely new place by adding an egg, baking soda, and cream of tarter. These additions result in cookies with a thicker, softer texture than the hard, crumbly shortbread you are used to eating.
While that accounts for these cookies’ incredible texture, the undeniably rich and buttery flavor of these almond shortbread cookies comes from using Butter Buds.
Yes, Butter Buds are all-natural and made from real butter, so don’t worry about serving anything artificial to your family. Butter Buds help to intensify the buttery taste of these cookies without making the cookies overly greasy. You can find Butter Buds in most supermarkets, and have lots of uses besides just baking.
What Butter is Best?
This recipe may use Butter Buds, but it has plenty of the real stuff in it as well. But what butter is best for shortbread? You probably already know that you should be sticking to unsalted butter for baking, but is there a difference between other kinds of butter?
The answer is yes. There are several significant differences. Outside of the whole organic versus non-organic division, you may want to consider using European or Irish-style butter in this recipe. These kinds of butter contain a higher butterfat content than American butter and often have a darker, naturally occurring yellow color.
These characteristics not only give your shortbread cookies a more pleasing look but help to produce a little more flakiness in your baked goods. Also, European-style butter goes through a fermentation process that gives it a bit of a tang that many people enjoy.
Tips For Making and Storing Almond Shortbread Cookies
- Keep everything cold. For the best results, your ingredients and everything you use to make the cookies need to be as cold as possible. You may even want to try freezing your butter and use a grater to add it to the cookie dough.
- Everyone loves chocolate. Chocolate goes amazingly well with almonds and vanilla, and you can completely transform the taste of these cookies by adding dark chocolate chips to the dough.
- Get in shape. Make your shortbread beautiful by using a cookie cutter or cookie press for baking a variety of shapes like crescents and rings.
- Store your cookies in an airtight container on the counter. Shortbread cookies last for up to a month, and some people even think they better a week after baking!
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Ingredients
Here’s a list of what you need:
- Butter
- Sugar
- Powdered Sugar
- Egg
- Butter Buds (powdered butter flavoring)
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- Cream of Tartar
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- All-purpose flour
- Finely chopped almonds
Instructions
- Combine flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda in a medium-sized bowl.
- Beat butter and both sugars together until fluffy.
- Add a beaten egg, vanilla, almond extract, butter buds, and salt. Beat until well blended.
- Add flour mixture, a third at a time, and beat until smooth.
- Stir in almonds with a spoon.
- Chill dough for 45 minutes.
- Roll cookie dough into 1 or 1¼-inch balls and place them on an ungreased cookie sheet.
- Flatten dough balls until they are about ¼-inch thick.
- Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes, until lightly golden.
- Remove cookies from the cookie sheet and place them on a paper towel to cool.
CopyKat Tip – be sure to allow your cookie sheets to cook off completely before placing the dough on the baking sheet. This way the cookies won’t spread out too much while baking.
Love homemade cookies and bars? Try these recipes!
- Keebler Sandies
- Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe
- Mrs Fields Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Jumbles
- Crunchies Cookies
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies Recipe
- Black and White Cookies
- Hello Dolly Cookie Bars
- White Chocolate Covered Oreos
- Homemade Twix
- Walkers Shortbread
Favorite Almond Recipes
Be sure to check out more of my copycat cookie recipes and the best Christmas recipes to make for your family and friends.
Keebler Almond Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 4 ounces butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 egg beaten
- 1/4 teaspoon Butter Buds (powdered butter flavoring)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoon almond Extract
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup almonds finely chopped
Instructions
- Measure flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda and set aside.
- Beat butter and both sugars together until fluffy. Add beaten egg, vanilla, almond extract, butter buds, and salt. Beat all ingredients until well blended.
- Add flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda mixture about a third at a time and beat until smooth. Dough will come away from the mixing bowl and will look a little dry. When cookie dough is blended, stir in almonds with a spoon.
- Chill dough for 30 – 45 minutes. Chilling the dough will keep the cookies from spreading in the pan when baked. Roll cookie dough into 1 – 1 1/4 inch balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten balls until they are about 1/4 inch thick.
- Bake the cookies in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 12 -15 minutes until edges are lightly golden. Remove cookies from cookie sheet and place on a baking rack to cool
Liz Nelson
These are wonderful!