Turkish Coffee Shortbread is buttery and delicious with a striking flavor combination of strong coffee and warm cardamom ~ this is dessert to linger over!
Turkish coffee shortbread is buttery with an aromatic cardamom-laced coffee flavor, but I don’t stop there, these cookies are finished off with a drizzle of dark chocolate. Without doubt, they’re a sophisticated dessert with a unique flavor combo you won’t see in your neighborhood bakery.
I love to bake with coffee, it’s got such a wonderful smokey character ~ it stars in my Coffee Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies or my Mocha Hazelnut Cake, two of my favorite recipes. But I celebrate cardamom just as enthusiastically in my Orange Cardamom Muffins and Swedish Cardamom Buns.
Turkish coffee flavors in this shortbread
Turkish coffee comes from the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East, it’s made by simmering ultra-finely ground coffee with sugar and a pinch of cardamom, then pouring it unfiltered so the grounds settle in the cup. The complex flavors of coffee and cardamom linger on the palate and make for a really enchanting wedge of shortbread. It goes perfectly with (you guessed it) a nice cup of coffee, Turkish or otherwise.
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How to make Turkish coffee shortbread wedges
- USE A SPRINGFORM OR TART PAN: Start with a buttered 9″ springform pan or tart pan with a removable bottom. This allows you to remove the slab of shortbread after baking so you can slice it into neat wedges.
- SPREAD OUT THE DOUGH: Pile your shortbread dough in the pan and pat out evenly with your hands. Use an offset spatula to get it really smooth and level.
- PRICK THE DOUGH: Prick the dough all over with the tines of a fork. This makes a classic shortbread pattern ~ it allows steam to escape and prevents the dough from puffing as it bakes.
- RELEASE FROM PAN: After baking let the pan cool for a few minutes and then remove the sides.
- SLICE INTO WEDGES: Let the Turkish coffee shortbread cool for about 15-20 minutes and then use a sharp knife to slice into 16 wedges.
Turkish coffee shortbread faqs
Yes. Simply roll out the dough to about 1/4″ thick and cut out with a 2″ cookie or biscuit cutter. Bake at 350F on a parchment lined baking sheet for about 10 minutes. Drizzle or dunk in chocolate.
Yes, you’ll want to grind them as finely as possible. You’ll get a grittier texture and a slightly more bitter flavor.
You can bake this in a regular 9″ cake pan or pie plate, but it will be a bit more difficult to slice and remove from the pan neatly.
Definitely, shortbread freezes beautifully. Let it cool completely and then wrap in plastic, then in foil. Plan to use it within 3 months.
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Turkish Coffee Shortbread
Equipment
- 9-inch springform pan or tart pan with removable bottom
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature.
- 2/3 cup white sugar
- 1 Tbsp espresso powder, (instant espresso)
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
chocolate coating
- 4 oz bittersweet chocolate chips, or bar chocolate, cut in small pieces.
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease your 9" springform pan or tart pan.
- Blend the softened butter, sugar, espresso powder, cardamom, vanilla and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer until smooth and creamy. Srape down the sides of the bowl.
- With the mixer on low slowly blend in the flour. Continue mixing until the soft dough comes together and there is no dry flour left. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl well to get everything well combined.
- Tranfer the dough to your prepared pan and pat out with your fingers. You want to get the dough evenly distributed across the pan. Use an offset spatula to smooth the surface.
- Prick the surface of the dough all over with the tines of a fork.
- Bake the shortbread for about 25 minutes on the middle rack of your preheated oven.
- Let the pan cool for 5 minutes on a rack before gently removing the sides of the pan. It sometimes helps to run the offset spatula around the edges to ensure a clean release. Let the shortbread cool another 10 minutes before slicing into 16 thin wedges with a long sharp knife.
- To make the chocolate coating, put the chocolate and vegetable oil in a small Pyrex measuring cup and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. Microwave for another 30 seconds. Stir until melted.
- Drizzle the wedges of shortbread with the chocolate.
- Store shortbread at room temperature for up to a week. It can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Notes
- 2/3 cup white sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature.
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp ground cardamom, use less for a more subtle effect.
- 1 Tbsp ground coffee or espresso powder, (instant espresso)
- 8 oz bittersweet chocolate chips, or bar chocolate, cut in small pieces.
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
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Set oven to 350F
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Put the sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and add the butter and salt. Mix together until combined. It doesn’t have to be completely smooth.
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Mix in the flour, cardamom, and ground coffee until the dough just comes together.
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Pull the dough together with your hands and set on a floured surface. Roll out to about 1/4 inch.
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Cut out the cookies using your preferred cookie cutter, I used a 2″ round.
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Transfer the cookies to a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes.
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Let cool slightly before transferring to a cooling rack.
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To make the chocolate coating, put the chocolate and vegetable oil in a small Pyrex measuring cup and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. Microwave for another 30 seconds. Stir until melted.
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Dip half of each cooled cookie in the chocolate, and let the excess drip off. Set the cookies down on parchment paper to harden.
Nutrition
Other shortbread to try
Chocolate Dipped Churro Shortbread Cookies
Espresso Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies
Espresso Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies are small but mighty cookies that pack a big punch ~ they’re a must for chocolate and coffee lovers, for sure.
Coffee Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies
Coffee Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies melt in your mouth with warm coffee flavor and toasted hazelnuts. Perfect for fall baking!
Maple Walnut Shortbread Cookies
The warm flavor of maple sugar mingles with toasty walnuts in these buttery maple walnut shortbread cookies. Roll them out or slice and bake!
Cheddar Walnut Savory Shortbread
These cheddar walnut crackers are simple but rich, and offer just the right satisfying bite to nosh on while waiting for dinner.
Marzipan Shortbread Cookies
Marzipan Shortbread Cookies ~ the Holiday Cookie for Almond Lovers!
Is there a version of this Expresso shortbread cookie in the shape of a heart where the dough on one side is darker than the other but this is in not from being dipped in chocolate? I found these at an Italian bakery but can’t find them anymore. Not sure if these cookies I am looking for are Italian or Turkish or just something common to that area of Europe. Please advise.
Gosh John that sounds amazing but I’d have to do some research, which I’m happy to do 🙂
Hi,
These cookies sound amazing, but I have to ask: by “finely ground coffee espresso” you do mean actual coffee grounds, not instant espresso powder, right?
I would think you would feel the grounds (like sand…?) as you eat the cookie. You don’t?
The coffee ingredient is actual coffee, ground very finely. In some of my recipes I use espresso powder, and you could use that with these cookies, if that’s what you have. In that case I would use less.
Could these me made in a tart pan? Pressed in, baked and cut into wedges? If so, how long a bake would you recommend
Yes, you can bake the dough in a tart pan, but I can’t be certain on bake time, I’d check it at 25 minutes, it will depend on your pan size.
These cookies have been such a hit with my friends and family. Will be making these again. I used a chili chocolate to dip the cookies in to finish them off. Amazing!
Umm so much wow ? these came out amazing. I don’t have a stand mixer so used a hand mixer. Otherwise followed the recipe exactly. I lightly drizzled them with dark chocolate instead of dipping them as I don’t tend to like cookies that are very sweet. Left half of the batch chocolate free. Turned out incredible!
Hello! I would love to bake these, but I unfortunately do not have a stand mixer. Before I make an attempt, can you advise if it is even possible to properly mix the ingredients without one? These sound amazing and would totally be worth the extra elbow grease, but if it compromises the cookie quality, I will just have to wait until I can visit my mom and make them with her!
You can definitely make shortbread by hand, that’s the old fashioned way. Just be sure to completely blend the butter into the flour. You can even do it with your fingers.
Thank you so much for your quick reply! I forgot to check back but we just made them today and they are amazing! So simple to make, but so complex in flavor! Really excited to share these with others!!
I know this post is almost 6 years old, and I don’t know if the blog is still active. I have a question. I actually have some Turkish coffee. Could I add that instead of espresso grounds and cardamom? If you’ve tried this, what measurement would you suggest?
You will need a dry powdered form of coffee for this recipe Chrissy. Liquid would throw the balance of ingredients off.
Just saw this post, I made these cookies with Turkish Coffee (which is freshly ground and already has cardamom mixed -in) and added an additional Tsp of coffee, the combined extra spices made them taste even more ‘coffeeish / cardamomish’. ;b
I also rolled mine into a 2 1/2″ log and cut them at 1/2″ thickness, which (for my taste) was the perfect size & texture for tea-time, along with a nice hot cup of brewed turkish coffee…..
Your flavour profiles are excellent Sue – keep up the amazing work!!!
Bloody delicious… and very sexy looking! ??
Just curious? About how many cookies does this make? Using a 2 inch round cutter like u do. Making these to take to work and I’m trying to decide if I need to double the recipe.
It will make about 4 dozen small cookies.
Hi Sue, could I use espresso powder for this? Like what you put in tiramisu and that sort of thing?
Yes, definitely.