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French Shortbread Cookies (Sablés Bretons)
5 from 44 votes

French Shortbread Cookies (Sablés Bretons)

French Shortbread Cookies, or Sablés Bretons, are rich, buttery cookies made from a blend of salted butter, granulated and powdered sugars, egg yolks, vanilla, and flour. The dough is rolled out and cut to preferred thickness, yielding cookies with a tender yet crisp texture and a slightly sandy crumb.

Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Total Time
1 hr
Servings: 20
Calories: 155 kcal
Course: Dessert, Baked Goods
Cuisine: French

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter I use salted butter, very soft
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • 2 egg yolk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour more for the counter
  • granulated sugar for sprinkling, or vanilla sugar

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat the oven to 375˚F. (190˚C.) Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
  2. In a medium size bowl, combine the soft butter and sugars. Stir until smooth and well combined.
  3. Add the egg yolks and vanilla extract and stir to incorporate. Add the flour and stir just until all of the flour disappears. The mixture will seem crumbly at first. Just keep stirring until it starts to come together.
  4. Sprinkle a work surface with flour. Have some extra flour on the side in a small cup.
  5. Turn the dough over several times to coat lightly with the flour then divide the dough in two and cover one half with a piece of plastic wrap.
  6. Keeping the surface and your rolling pin lightly dusted with flour at all times, roll out the dough to the desired thickness. I like mine about a ¼ inch thick for thinner cookies and closer to ⅜ for thicker ones like in this post. You can go thinner or thicker it’s just important to keep the surface underneath the dough lightly floured as you roll. (I also like to dip my cookie cutter in flour before cutting each cookie to keep the dough from sticking to the cutter.)
  7. Use a cutter of your choice (I used a scalloped 3-inch cutter) to cut out the cookies, transferring them to one of the prepared sheet pans as you go. Space the cookies 2 inches apart.
  8. Bring the dough scraps together, then roll out more cookies until the dough is used up. Repeat with second ball of dough. Sprinkle the cookies lightly with granulated sugar, cane sugar or Vanilla Sugar. Chill the cookies in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes before baking.
  9. Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes or until light golden brown. If the cookies have puffed a bit or have some little bubbles, you can flatten them at this point with the back of a flat metal spatula. Sprinkle lightly with a bit more sugar. Transfer the cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Notes

  • Refer to detailed café tips for rolling and shaping to achieve the proper texture and avoid overworking the dough.
  • Metric measurements are available via a toggle button above the instructions for precision baking.
  • The recipe originated from Mon Petit Four and maintains authenticity to traditional Sablés Bretons.

Nutrition Information

Calories 155kcal (8%) Carbohydrates 15g (5%) Protein 2g (4%) Fat 10g (15%) Saturated Fat 6g (30%) Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5g (3%) Monounsaturated Fat 3g (15%) Trans Fat 0.4g (20%) Cholesterol 44mg (15%) Sodium 74mg (3%) Potassium 18mg (0%) Fiber 0.3g (1%) Sugar 6g (12%) Vitamin A 310IU (6%) Calcium 7mg (1%) Iron 1mg (6%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 20 Serving

Amount Per Serving

Calories 155

% Daily Value*

Calories 155kcal 8%
Carbohydrates 15g 5%
Protein 2g 4%
Fat 10g 15%
Saturated Fat 6g 30%
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5g 3%
Monounsaturated Fat 3g 15%
Trans Fat 0.4g 20%
Cholesterol 44mg 15%
Sodium 74mg 3%
Potassium 18mg 0%
Fiber 0.3g 1%
Sugar 6g 12%
Vitamin A 310IU 6%
Calcium 7mg 1%
Iron 1mg 6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.