Marzipan shortbread cookies combine buttery shortbread with sweet almond marzipan for a tender, melt-in-your-mouth holiday treat. These stamped cookies bake up beautifully with a rich almond flavor.
Marzipan shortbread cookies need to be in your December baking schedule, trust me. Shortbread lovers, almond lovers, pretty cookie lovers will be charmed by these simple but distinctive holiday cookies.
- No chill dough is easy ~ just roll, stamp, and bake!
- Stamped cookies are stunning and so festive.
- Yes, you can make them without a stamp!
What is marzipan?
Marzipan is a sweet, smooth almond confection made from finely ground almonds, sugar, and usually a little egg white or glucose syrup to bind it together. Marzipan is similar to almond paste, but a little sweeter, smoother, and firmer in texture. I use Odense brand, the most common here in the US.
Good-quality marzipan tastes like a luxurious almond candy, so you can imagine what it does to my shortbread cookies!
marzipan shortbread cookies method
- Blend up a marzipan enriched shortbread dough.
- Roll into balls and roll the balls in sugar.
- Stamp each ball with a cookie stamp.
- Trim edges with a round cookie cutter.
- Bake.
the bottom line
These easy cookies add a bit of Old World European charm to your holiday cookie collection. The almond flavor, the crisp buttery shortbread texture, and the pretty sparkled stamp imprint make them really appealing.
If you don’t have a stamp you can use the tines of a fork to press into the sugared ball of marzipan dough, or the bottom of a glass to flatten it slightly before baking. These Christmas cookies are a must make!
marzipan cookies faqs and troubleshooting
Marzipan adds a rich almond flavor and a soft, almost fudgy richness to the crumb. It doesn’t just flavor the dough, it also gives the shortbread a slightly more tender, luxurious texture than butter and flour alone.
You can, in the same amount. You may want to add 1/4 more almond extract and 1/4 cup more sugar to compensate.
This dough is naturally crumbly, but it stick together when you press it into a ball. Just scoop it out and use your hands to form a ball. If you’ve measured too much flour you may need a few drops of water to moisten it.
Use fresh room temperature marzipan. Good marzipan should feel firm but pliable; if yours is dry and crumbly, it’s probably old. (You can grate it or finely chop it if necessary.) I use Odense brand marzipan, which comes in a little foil wrapped log.
Sure! Just flatten the cookie with the back of a water glass. You won’t get the pretty pattern, but you’ll get the great flavor.
After stamping you can use a plain cookie cutter to cut the rough edges away. I actually like the look of the rustic edges (and they cook up nice and crisp) so sometimes I leave the cookies like that.
Look for lightly set edges and just a hint of golden color on the bottom; the tops should stay fairly pale. Over baking will dry out both the shortbread and the marzipan, so err on the side of slightly under rather than deeply golden. 15 minutes works in my oven, but yours may vary.
Definitely, just double wrap and use within 3 months.
I used a Rycraft cookie stamp, made in the US, you can find it here.
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Marzipan Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
- baking sheets
- parchment paper
- #40 cookie scoop (1 1/2 Tbsp)
Ingredients
- 10 Tbsp salted butter at room temperature*, (must be soft, cold butter will not work)
- 1/2 cup marzipan, Use fresh marzipan for the best texture and flavor. (If your marzipan is very hard or dry, grate or finely chop it first.)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or paste
- 2 cups all purpose flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Beat together the 10 Tbsp softened salted butter, 1/2 cup marzipan, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 large egg yolk, 1/2 tsp almond extract, and 1 tsp vanilla extract or paste. Beat until everything is well incorporated and free of large lumps.
- With the mixer on low add the 2 cups all purpose flour and mix until the dough comes together and no dry flour is left. Note the dough will be crumbly but should be moist enough to hold together when pressed between your fingers.**
- Use a spring-loaded cookie scoop (a #40 scoop ~ 1.5 tablespoons) to portion out the dough and gently compress it together with your hands into a round ball. Roll the ball of dough in sugar and place on your cookie sheet. Center the stamp over the dough and press gently and evenly until you can just see the dough coming out beyond the edges of the stamp. Release the dough by gently peeling it off the stamp with your fingers.
- You can leave the jagged edges for a rustic cookie, or you can remove them ~ just use a plain cookie cutter to cut them away, leaving the pretty design and a perfectly round cookie. The cut edges can be recycled back to the bowl of dough and reused.
- Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the cookies are set and just starting to turn golden around the bottom and edges, but still pale on top.
- The cookies will last several days at room temperature, and can be frozen for up to 3 months.
These must be about the best of the best of the shortbread cookies – beautiful almond fragrant flavour with the perfect mix of crumbly crunchy exterior and a moist delicate interior. But make your own marzipan – its easy, better and most definately cheaper – and then you can afford to double the recipe!
Sue,
Can almond paste be a substitute for marzipan for this recipe?
Yes, you can do that, same amount. It’s a bit less sweet and the flavor is a bit softer so you may want to add 1/4 tsp more almond extract and 1/4 cup more sugar.