Cardamom shortbread cookies boast an exotic warm flavor, balanced with a sweet, citrusy orange glaze. The cookies are buttery, tender, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious!
★★★★★
"Best shortbread cookies I’ve tasted so far. They just crumble in the most delicate way in my mouth, so delicious."
-Susy
Cardamom shortbread cookies are excellent when you want something a little extra special. They make a delicious addition to an assorted cookie tray, and are perfect for a wedding or baby shower!
Note from Erin
My family was a little suspicious of these cookies at first, but after one bite, my husband exclaimed, "These cookies are crave-worthy!"
Once you taste them, I am sure you will agree! My kids would eat a whole tray of these cookies if I let them!
If you are adding these to a Christmas cookie tray, consider these other delightful cookies as well:
- Iced Thumbprint Cookies
- Brown Butter Toffeedoodle Cookies
- Salted Caramel Brownie Cookies
- Marshmallow Chocolate Chip Cookies
What is Cardamom?
Cardamom is a warm spice, with a strong, sweet flavor. It has a hint of citrus and herbs. The seed pods come from a plant closely related to the ginger and turmeric families. This spice is the main ingredient in chai, so if you like chai tea, you will love these cookies!
Cardamom can be found already ground, but I like to use freshly ground cardamom for the best flavor. Once it is ground, the oils start to dissipate, which weakens the flavor of the cardamom.
I found cardamom pods in the spice section of my local grocery store, but if you have trouble locating them they can also be ordered through Amazon.
Ingredient Insights
The recipe card at the bottom of this post includes the complete list of ingredients, measurements, and instructions.
This recipe follows very closely with the formula for traditional shortbread cookies, which crumble as you bite into them, and then almost melt in your mouth.
The addition of the cardamom brings an unexpected warmth, and the orange glaze balances the cookie with a bright sweetness. Plus, it looks gorgeous!
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- Cardamom: Freshly grind your cardamom for the best flavor. You can use just the seeds inside the pod or grind the whole pod. There isn't a flavor difference with either method.
- Confectioner's Sugar: We use confectioner's sugar (also known as powdered sugar or icing sugar) versus granulated sugar in this recipe because it has cornstarch in it. This makes the cookies less crisp and more tender.
- Butter: Soften your butter to room temperature so that it creams with the sugar! I use salted butter, but if you prefer to use unsalted then just add ½ teaspoon of salt to your recipe.
- All-Purpose Flour: This flour is the ideal choice for shortbread cookies because it gives them their delicate crumbs without being too dense or too crumbly.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Cream Butter
- Use butter that is softened, but not melted.
- Cream the butter with the powdered sugar until it is smooth.
Pro Tip: The butter should be fully incorporated without chunks, but you do not want it as fluffy as when you make other types of cookies. Minimizing the air pockets helps produce a classic, dense shortbread.
Stir in Flour and Cardamom
- Once the flour and cardamom are added, mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. The mixture will still be crumbly, but in large chunks rather than small crumbs.
Pro Tip: It is important to mix the flour and cardamom in gently without adding too much air to the dough.
Refrigerate
- Form the dough into a disk and refrigerate it for 30 minutes before rolling it out. If it gets too soft while you are rolling it out, stick it back in the refrigerator for a little bit.
Pro Tip: Think about your dough like butter (after all, that is a large part of what this dough is made of). If you touch soft butter then it will stick all over your hands. But you cannot roll out a stick of hard butter. The same is true for this dough. You want it to be cold enough that it isn't sticky, but not too cold.
Roll and Cut
- Roll the dough ½-inch thick, then cut using your favorite dough cutter.
- Gather the remaining dough and roll it out again until all of the dough has been used. Remember, you can refrigerate your dough again if it gets too warm.
- Use a small spatula to transfer the cut dough onto a parchment-lined plate and freeze for 10-15 minutes before baking.
Pro Tip: Freezing before baking allows the butter to harden so that the sugar and flour begin to bake before the butter melts. This keeps the dough from spreading too much.
Bake
- Shortbread is cooked at 325°F which is a lower temperature than most other cookies.
- This low temperature helps the cookies to cook all of the way through without browning too much. You want the cookies to just begin to turn golden.
- This lower temperature also helps contribute to the wonderful shortbread texture, as it controls how the butter melts into the starch.
Glaze (Optional)
- Once the cookies have cooled completely, whisk together powdered sugar, orange juice, and milk.
- The glaze can be drizzled over the top of the cookies, but I like to cover the entire top surface of the cookies by dipping them.
- Gently place a cookie top-down into the glaze, then remove the cookie and let it drip. Turn the cookie over and set it on a plate or cooling rack.
Pro Tip: Wait to stack the cookies until the glaze has completely dried. Otherwise, they will stick together.
Keep It Simple 🍃
You can also slice the dough instead of rolling and cutting! Simply roll the dough into a log. Refrigerate the log for at least an hour. When you are ready to bake, slice the dough into ½-inch disks.
Recipe
Cardamom Shortbread Cookies with Orange Glaze
Recipe by:Ingredients
Cardamom Shortbread
- 1 cup (226 grams) salted butter softened
- ½ cup (60 grams) powdered (confectioners) sugar
- 1 teaspoons (2 grams) freshly ground cardamom
- 1 ¾ cups (228 grams) all-purpose flour
Orange Glaze
- 1 cup (120 grams) powdered (confectioners) sugar
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) orange juice
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) milk
- orange zest, to decorate optional
Instructions
Making the Shortbread
- If using fresh cardamom, grind pods into a fine powder.
- Beat butter, sugar, on low speed until the sugar is incorporated, and then increase to medium speed and continue to beat until creamed, about 30 seconds. Scrape the sides.1 cup salted butter, ½ cup powdered (confectioners) sugar
- Add the flour and cardamom and mix on low speed until the dough comes together in medium-sized chunks and you do not see any flour streaks in the bowl. Do not overmix.1 teaspoons freshly ground cardamom , 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- Press the dough together using a spatula or your hands, then turn onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Use the plastic wrap to help shape the dough into a disk. Wrap tightly with the plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 325 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove dough from the refrigerator. Unwrap the dough and place it between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll ½-inch thick, then cut out with cookie cutters. Place the cookies onto a parchment-lined plate and put in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
- Transfer the dough onto your baking sheet and bake for 20-22 minutes, or until very lightly golden. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Making the Glaze
- Once the cookies have cooled, mix together 1 cup of powdered confectioner's sugar along with the orange juice and milk, until smooth.1 cup powdered (confectioners) sugar, 1 tablespoon orange juice, 1 tablespoon milk
- Dip the cookies, top side-down, into the glaze. Then remove and turn top-side up. Sprinkle with zest, if desired. Set on a plate or cooling rack until the glaze has set.orange zest, to decorate
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional facts provided are only estimates. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Sam says
I made these for the first time tonight and they came out perfect! I hadn’t made a shortbread cookie before, and these cookies were super easy. I used fresh ground cardamom as per the recipe (I think this was essential, the flavor is awesome), but subbed clementines for oranges since that’s just what I had on hand.
For folks that wanted more citrus flavor- just use more zest to garnish or throw it in the glaze. Mine came out very tasty and well balanced flavor wise. Next time I might try chilling them in a roll like another commenter since I was entirely too impatient to wait for it to warm up a bit to roll out 😅.
Erin says
These are great tips, Sam! Thanks for sharing!
Darla says
How many cookies does this make? What is a serving?
Erin says
It makes 15 cookies. You can double the recipe if you want a larger batch.
Gail says
There is a discrepancy regarding the amount of cardamom needed in the recipe. It calls for 1tap; however the recipe says 2 grams. I tsp is equal to 5grams so I’m not sure which is correct.
Erin says
Hi Gail! I just measured/weighed a teaspoon of ground cardamom to double check and it is 2 grams.
Terry M says
The variance in weight per teaspoon will vary depending on the coarseness of the grind. A coarse grind will fill a teaspoon more quickly than a fine grind.
Erin Gierhart says
Terry, that’s a great point and you’re absolutely right. The grind makes a real difference with spices like cardamom, especially when measuring by volume. I appreciate you adding that clarification for other bakers.
Birgitta says
This really looks like a lovely recipe, however, I don’t trust it. You say 1part sugar, 2 parts butter and 3 parts flour. Then you explain about adding some flour. Now recipe reads: 226 grams butter with 60 grams sugar and 228 grams flour. That makes butter and flour 1:1 and a rather small quantity of sugar.As I don’t work with cups and had bad experiences with conversions I better go on looking for another recipe.
Roberta says
I made this recipe today and it is very good. I used vanilla cream instead of milk along with adding 1/8 teaspoon of Fiori Di Sicilia to the icing since I only had one mandarin available for juice and barely any zest. I used a 2 inch round cutter and got 18 cookies with remnant's . I would definitely make these again. It’s good enough to go into my recipe notebook. Husband said they were the kind of cookies you would find in a high end pastry shop. The postman was delivering when they were being iced and he also loved the cookies.
Erin says
Your postman had perfect timing, didn't he? I'm glad to hear that the Fiori Di Sicilia worked well as an orange juice substitute!
Roberta Craft says
I used it with the Orange Juice for my icing. Making them again for Christmas and find forming the log and cutting the cookies is much easier and faster.
Erin says
Thanks for sharing, Roberta! I’m glad to hear the log-and-slice method made things quicker for you. Perfect for holiday baking!
Rachelle says
These look great. Can I use this recipe for embossed cookies using an embossing rolling pin?
Thank you
Erin says
I have not tried it with an embossing rolling pin, but let me know if you do!
Alma Sorokes says
Hi Erin , these sound yummy !
Do you think k I could use the William Sonoma thumb print cookies with this recipe?
Thanks in advance , Alma
denny says
these are great cookies!! they remind me of the Christmas tastes of northern Europe. Delicious and unique
Erin says
Thank you, Denny! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cookies. It’s wonderful to hear they brought back those festive flavors from Northern Europe. Perfect for the holiday season!
Mandy says
I made these last year with no recipe alterations, and they were such a hit that my family begged me to make them again this year. I'm just about to get started. 🙂 Happy Holidays!
Erin says
That's wonderful to hear, Mandy! I'm so glad your family loves the recipe so much they requested it again. Happy holidays to you and yours—enjoy making them this year! 😊
Kathy says
Can the dough or the baked cookies be frozen without losing their flavor or texture?
Erin says
Great question, Kathy! Both the dough and the baked cookies can be frozen without losing flavor or texture. For the dough, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and store it in a freezer bag. For baked cookies, let them cool completely, then freeze in an airtight container or freezer bag with parchment paper between layers. They’ll stay fresh for up to three months.
Andie says
Good morning! How far in advance do you think I could make these if I wait to glaze them? but also how far in advance do you think they could be glazed? for example - could I make the cookies on Tuesday for an event the following Monday, and glaze them on Sunday evening?
Erin says
Good morning, Andie! You can absolutely make the cookies that far in advance. Bake and glaze them on Tuesday, then freeze them to keep them fresh. There's no need to wait to glaze, as they freeze beautifully with the glaze. Just let them thaw at room temperature before your event on Monday.
Dawn E says
Oh my goodness!! I've not attempted shortbreads before - but they are my favorite. I failed miserably at butter cookies and just never moved forward. These were not difficult and they taste absolutely delicious. I may not even do the glaze - they don't "need" it. Looking for solutions to
Mail them without getting broken. I usually make biscotti to ship but this year I want to do these. Thank you for this recipe. It is amazing
Erin Gierhart says
Dawn, I’m thrilled you enjoyed the flavor! Thank you for sharing this with me. Shortbread has a sturdy, sandy texture that ships better than most cookies. A tight tin lined with parchment and a layer of parchment between each row usually keeps everything intact. If there is any room for the cookies to shift in the tin, fill that space with more parchment, then wrap the tin in a layer or 2 of bubble wrap.
Dianne says
I made these yesterday and they were delicious! I ground cardomom pods and added a little cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and ground ginger. For the glaze, I used Silk whipping cream and added about a tablespoon of ginger paste. They were so good. This recipe is a keeper!
Erin says
Thanks for sharing, Dianne! Your additions sound amazing—such a warm and flavorful twist. I’m thrilled the recipe is a keeper for you. Happy baking!
Sylvia says
Wonderful recipe, easy to follow 😊
Erin says
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Sylvia! Thank you for trying it and sharing your kind words.
michelle says
utterly delicious. thank you!
Erin Gierhart says
I'm so glad you loved them, Michelle! Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. It means a lot!
Susybaker says
Best shortbread cookies I’ve tasted so far. They melt in your mouth. The only thing I did differently was to add the orange zest to the glaze in lieu of sprinkling on top. They just crumble in the most delicate way in my mouth, so delicious.
Erin Gierhart says
Such a compliment, thank you so much, Susy!
Alyssa says
Can this dough be rolled into logs and turned into slice and bake cookies, instead of rolled and cut with cookie cutters? Or would that change the consistency? Thank you!
Erin Gierhart says
Yes, it sure can!
Jessica says
Loved these! Definitely could have added more cardamom though. I couldn’t really taste it.
Erin Gierhart says
If your fresh caradamom is a coarser grind you'll need more than a teaspoon. Try measuring by weight instead of volume.
Sue says
these cookies are FABULOUS!
Erin Gierhart says
I’m so glad you loved them. Thanks for sharing!
Lisa Jacquemetton says
Killer shortbread cookie. For my freezer needed more like 20 minutes, 18 minutes in my oven. Used all orange juice and added the zest to the glaze. Frosted versus dipping. Made about 20-ish cookies for me. I'll make a square next time instead of a disc to facilitate cutting. Soooo good. Thank you. Great combination, cardamom and orange.
Erin Gierhart says
Lisa, I’m so glad you loved them and really appreciate you sharing what worked for you.
Virginia says
These were so delicious, I only wish I made a double batch!
I used cardamom chips, as that’s what I had. I ground them up.
If using pods, do you use entire pod or just seeds?
Thanks for a great recipe!
Erin Gierhart says
Hi Virginia! I’m so happy you loved them. I usually grind the whole pod, because it's quick and the flavor difference is subtle. For the most concentrated cardamom flavor, use just the seeds.
Kathy says
These are fabulous. I did add a tablespoon of orange zest to the cookie dough for more orange flavor. Some of the best cookies I have ever made.
Erin Gierhart says
That's wonderful, Kathy! Thank you so much for sharing your experience!
Elena Zajechowski says
Wonderful recipe, very exotic but sweet. I made them once and would like to make them again but want to freeze the dough one month ahead, can I do this?
Erin Gierhart says
Yes, you sure can!