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I’m a big fan of simple recipes.
While I enjoy to try out new things and make more elaborate recipes as well, the simple recipes are what I’m going for most of the time.
These are the ones I make when I want something quick & easy that won’t require dozens and dozens of ingredients.
And these keto-friendly shortbread cookies are definitely one of those easy recipes we all love.
With only 4 ingredients (and two optional ones) that everyone who is on a low carb diet probably already has at home, it’s one of those last minute recipes we can all turn to when we want something delicious and sweet – especially during the holiday season.
I first tried traditional shortbread cookies during a trip to London a few years ago and I absolutely fell in love.
And what’s not to love, right?
A buttery and sweet dough that melts in your mouth and reminds you of how important the simple things in life are.
With these ketogenic shortbread cookies, you can have that exact feeling without having to consume tons of sugar!
A healthy, sugar-free treat that keeps you safely in ketosis during the holidays.
That’s what you came for, right? Let’s get to the recipe!
OTHER KETO CHRISTMAS COOKIES:
Keto Pecan Snowball Cookies Keto Chocolate Crinkle Cookies Keto Jam Thumbprint Cookies Keto Vanilla Crescent Cookies Keto Cinnamon Star Cookies Keto Coconut Macaroons
KETO SHORTBREAD COOKIES INGREDIENTS:
(You can find the exact amounts needed on the recipe card at the end of this post.)
in my opinion, the BEST keto-friendly sweetener.
– it doesn’t spike your blood sugar,
– it’s completely safe and
– has a very fresh & natural sweet taste.
Because of it’s natural origin and natural production process (fermentation with a certain kind of yeast) I also consider erythritol to be paleo-friendly!
Even though I’m a bit biased towards erythritol, you can use other granulated keto-friendly sweeteners that won’t spike your blood sugar as well, but be aware that you may have to add more or less sweetener if you do so.
Erythritol is about 70% as sweet as sugar whereas other keto-friendly sweeteners like monk fruit and stevia are much sweeter than sugar.
Keep that ratio in mind when you try this recipe and adjust accordingly.
HOW TO MAKE KETO SHORTBREAD COOKIES:
1. Mix the ingredients for the dough:
Preheat your oven to 350°F/180°C.
Mix all of the ingredients for the dough and knead it with your hands or a mixer with dough hooks until you get a chunk-free mass.
(Don’t worry if the dough is a little bit crumbly, that’s normal.
You shouldn’t have any chunks of almond flour left though.)
☝︎ Usually, the dough for traditional shortbread has to be chilled in the fridge for a while before being able to be processed further but after repeatedly making this recipe, I now think you should skip this step and roll out the dough right away.
I don’t know why but apparently the keto-friendly version of shortbread cookie dough doesn’t like to be chilled in the fridge and will get quite crumbly and difficult to roll out.
2. Roll out the dough and cut out the cookies:
Roll out the dough until it’s approx. 1cm thick (0.4″).
Use a sharp knife to cut out rectangles.
My shortbread cookies were approx. 1.2″ x 2.4″ (3cm x 6 cm).
Prick the cookies’ surface with a fork.
3. Bake in the oven:
Place the cookies on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Bake in the preheated oven for approx. 10 minutes.
☝︎ Keep an eye on the cookies while they are in the oven!
In my experience, almond flour tends to burn faster than wheat flour.
4. Optional: Brush the cookies with a bit of cream and sprinkle a bit of granulated erythritol on top of them:
I brushed the cookies with a tiny amount of cream (maybe 2 tsp for all of them) and sprinkled a bit of granulated erythritol on top of them while they were still warm.
This is only for decoration and not necessary for the recipe – it does look nice though.
5. Serve:
Let the cookies cool down completely before enjoying them with a hot cup of tea or coffee.
OTHER POPULAR KETO HOLIDAY RECIPES: (VIDEO)
(Video moves to the top of the post on desktop.)
Nutrition Info:
One keto shortbread cookie has 0.8g net carbs (2.4g total carbs and 1.6g dietary fiber), 6.1g fat, 5.3g protein, and 83 calories.
One of the cookies I made had a weight of approx. 0.7 oz (20g), was approx. 1.2″ x 2.4″ (3cm x 6 cm) and I got approx. 10 cookies out of the recipe.
The nutrition info may vary if you make bigger or smaller cookies.
(I try to be as accurate as possible with this information, but values may vary because of natural occurring fluctuations and different products used.)
HOW TO STORE THE KETO COOKIES:
Store in an air-tight container for approx. 1-2 weeks.
They may get a bit softer after a few days but they’ll stay delicious!
OTHER DELICIOUS KETO TREATS:
Eager for more delicious keto treats? I’ve got you covered! Check out these posts too:
Healthy No Bake Ferrero Rocher Keto Fat Bombs Healthy No Bake Pumpkin Pie Keto Fat Bombs Keto Coconut Almond Fat Bombs (Homemade Raffaello Coconut Balls) Keto Cinnamon Star Cookies (Keto Christmas Cookies) Healthy Keto Coconut Macaroons (Traditional German Christmas Cookies) Healthy No Bake Keto Coconut Bars (Homemade Mounds Bars/ Bounty Bars) Chocolate Keto Mug Cake With Peanut Butter Core
These Keto Shortbread Cookies are so easy and comforting! A perfect treat for the holidays that's healthy, gluten-free and keto-friendly!
Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.
Mix all of the ingredients and knead until you get a smooth dough.
Roll out the dough until it's approx 1 cm (0.4") thick.
Cut the dough into rectangles using a sharp knife. (My cookies were approx. 1.2" x 2.4" - 3cm x 6 cm).
Prick the cookies' surface with a fork.
Bake approx. 10 minutes.
Optional:
Brush a bit of cream (approx. 2 tsp for all of them) on the cookies while they are still warm and sprinkle a bit of granulated erythritol on top of them.
This is only for decoration and not necessary for the recipe - it does look nice though.
Enjoy with a hot cup of coffee or tea!
Store in an air-tight container for approx. 1-2 weeks.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you buy something through one of those links, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Thank you for supporting my site!
Serving Size 1 cookie (approx. 0.7 oz/ 20g)
Servings 10
- Amount Per Serving
- Calories 83
- % Daily Value *
- Total Fat 6.1g10%
- Total Carbohydrate 2.4g1%
- Dietary Fiber 1.6g7%
- Protein 5.3g11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.
Mix all of the ingredients and knead until you get a smooth dough.
Roll out the dough until it's approx 1 cm (0.4") thick.
Cut the dough into rectangles using a sharp knife. (My cookies were approx. 1.2" x 2.4" - 3cm x 6 cm).
Prick the cookies' surface with a fork.
Bake approx. 10 minutes.
Optional:
Brush a bit of cream (approx. 2 tsp for all of them) on the cookies while they are still warm and sprinkle a bit of granulated erythritol on top of them.
This is only for decoration and not necessary for the recipe - it does look nice though.
Enjoy with a hot cup of coffee or tea!
Store in an air-tight container for approx. 1-2 weeks.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you buy something through one of those links, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Thank you for supporting my site!
Hello there!
I’m Uliana, the creator of hungryforinspiration.com.
The Low Carb/ Keto Lifestyle is my passion and I’m so happy that I can share my journey with you!
Click here, to learn more about me.
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Hi Uliana
I am so happy to have found this shortbread recipe of yours. The results are awesome!
I found it a bit tricky at first handling the dough but got used to it after the first couple of batches. I use a cookie cutter to cut them. I turn the heat down low and cook them longer. They turn out perfect. No browning and has the crunch that I’m looking for in a shortbread biscuit I sprinkle granulated erthrytol on as soon as they come out of the oven. I use this recipe to make the base for cheesecake base. It works great.
Many thanks 😁
This recipe is literally for 3-4 cookies 😳
Hi Uliana! I just discovered your site when I was looking for keto shortbread recipes to make Millionaire’s Shortbread with. I opted for your recipe and boy am I glad I did! This turned out amazing, the perfect base for the subsequent caramel and chocolate layers. The shortbread has a lovely crunch and texture and holds together really well. I made double the batch and just rolled it out under some cling film directly in the tin to get a nice even layer. I needed to bake it an extra 5 minutes or so. Thank you so much for your site and sharing your awesome recipes!
can I use xylitol as the sweetener? Would it still come out the same?
I added 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, 1/4 cup seed/nut/current mix, 2 tablespoons ground flax and I blended in Ninja. Wrapped in parchment paper and formed into a tube shape. Put in freezer for 15 minutes and sliced into thin slices. Sprinkled with chocolate sea salt. Baked on parchment paper.
Absolutely delicious.
Can coconut flour be substituted?
I followed the receipt here. It tastes really good.
Thanks you for making Ketoer also have good choices of desserts. 🙂
This is NOT shortbread. Almond flour is from nuts, not grain-like regular grain flour.
However, once you stop expecting shortbread, and accept it for being something ENTIRELY different, you might like this recipe.
Every diet group wants to PRETEND that their substitutes taste like the real thing WHEN THEY DON’T TASTE LIKE THE ORIGINAL AT ALL.
Enjoy!
ABSOLUTELY agree with this. I have Type 2 diabetes and have spent nearly three years scouring the internet for sweet things and bread substitutes. Some of these things are hilarious as they make minute portions and claim low calories and carb counts. I’m now very sceptical and basically ignore words like ‘bread,’ ‘biscuit,’ etc.
That said, this particular recipe makes quite a nice, almost crisp cookie/biscuit thing.
On what surface and with what type of roller did you roll the dough out with?
You mention the thickness the dough should be when rolled out but no other dimensions…
I made the recipe but struggled with dough sticking to board (even tried rolling on parchment paper) and rolling pin (both wood).
Thinking I should have chilled dough first but you sounded quite definite it wasn’t needed…
How about a video to go with recipe!
The easiest way would be to place the dough between two sheets of parchment paper (then you don’t need to cool it) and rolling it out with a normal wooden rolling pin.
Videos are definitely planned for the future! I hope that helps.
I did this between parchment, it came out perfect I’m the only keto person and everyone loved them, I dipped them in sugar fee choc on one end, and I got two, lol, so making more!
I tried making this and my cookies just flattened out with melted butter in the oven. Tried as second time after chilling the dough and still had the same problem. Just a melted butter mess in the oven. Any ideas why? What should I have done differently?
Hi Uliana,
I tried making these with almond meal and they completely melted in the oven! 🙁 I had a taste with a spoon and they were delicious but I was just wondering how I can stop them from melting completely in the oven? My initial thought was to use less butter but the dough was perfect in that it rolled out nicely and stuck together… I don’t see a major difference with using almond flour instead of almond meal as they are both made out of 100% almonds.
Thanks so much for your recipes! They are always look incredible 🙂
Hey Liz,
I’m so sorry for my late reply! We are on vacation right now and have limited internet available.
I’m also super sorry that your cookies melted in the oven!
There could be a few reasons for this, one of the most common ones is that the oven is not hot enough.
Turning it 5 degrees higher than usual and/ or preheating it longer than usual could help.
I also think that the definitions of almond flour and almond meal seem to vary from country to country.
I always use almond flour and not almond meal for my baking recipes – almond flour in Germany is also 100% almonds but it’s dehydrated and has less fat than almond meal.
I seem to find different definitions for the difference of almond flour and almond meal in the US – some sources say they’re the same whereas other ones state the same differences as here in Germany.
Maybe swapping almond meal for almond flour may do the trick – in my experience, it does make a difference!
I really hope this helps!
Much love
Uliana
Hi Uliana,
Thanks so much for your response! Before I saw your response, I told my hairdresser what happened with my cookies and he also recommended using almond flour or if I were to use almond meal I needed to process it in the food processor as it is less fine than almond flour. He also said to cook the cookies at a lower temperature.
The almond flour I had looked identical to the almond meal so I whizzed it in the food processor and also placed the cookies in at 160° and cooked them for longer instead! Thankfully this ended up working! I cooked them for about 20 minutes and then took them out to rest for about 5 minutes (as they were melting just a bit) and then popped them back in for another 20 minutes! They kept most of their shape and browned the perfect amount. Very strange but it worked!
I always look forward to shortbread at Christmas but I’ve had some health problems that have acquired me to switch to keto and I’m so thankful I found your recipe because all of the store bought shortbread is full of sugar! I now have a perfected recipe to make for Christmas to keep my shortbread tradition – but in a healthier way of course!
Hope you are having a blast on vacation! 🙂
When I made these they completely spread out and didn’t hold shape or cook appropriately. The edges started to burn but the centre didn’t cook. The taste was amazing and I was actually using them to make a base for cheesecake so it worked great still. Just wanted to know what else I could do to make sure these turn out next time? More almond flour maybe?
Hey!
So sorry this happened to you!
More almond flour could definitely help.
Another issue could be the oven temperature – usually cookies spread when the oven isn’t hot enough and they spread before they have a chance to harden.
I worked with a few different ovens and some ovens are actually much colder (or hotter) than what they are supposed to be, especially older ovens.
An oven thermometer is a good idea in those cases (and if you bake often) or simply try to up the temperature by 5-10°.
Adding more flour and chilling the dough before placing the cookies in the oven might also help, though!
I hope they’ll turn out better next time!
Much love to you and sorry for the late response!
Uliana 🙂
Hi, do you think these could be used as a shaped cookie dough? I’m waiting to make shaped Keto friendly cookies, Thanks
Hey Trish!
I’m not completely sure what you mean by “shaped cookie dough”.
If you are asking if you can make them into another shape instead of the balls, you definitely can! 🙂
Hope this helps, otherwise, simply drop another comment and I’m trying to be of more help.
Much love
Uliana 🙂
These was so delicious that I made them twice in a row! So good with a darjeeling tea almond “latte”. I didn’t even feel jealous of my husband as he ate his sugary cake from the pastry shop next to me. It felt great to have our tea time together, even though we follow different diets.
(and yes, it was your name that made me think of Russia)
Oh yeah, I can imagine that they would taste great with a Darjeeling tea almond milk latte! 😀
I also love to have them at tea time.
I already got my partner to switch to a more low carb based diet and right now he enjoys my keto treats even more than sugary treats.
(He hates the feeling of sugar on his teeth, so that was a huge reason why he likes the erythritol based sweets more now).
Maybe your husband will follow somewhen as well. ????
Have a great weekend!
Hi there . I tried this recipie. Added a little less sugar and a small handful of dried cranberries in but sadly I had the same scenario where they spread and the edges cooked but the centre was soft. It crumbled when I lifted it off the baking sheet 😭