Crisp and buttery Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies with a hint of tea, with just 5-ingredients and an easy lemon glaze, they’re perfect for parties, tea time, or scarfing down all by yourself!
These Earl Grey Cookies are an easy and delightful sweet treat that’s perfect for afternoon tea, cookie swaps, and the cookie jar at home!
Shortbread cookies and my favorite!
I know, I know… I say every cookie is my favorite… but I REALLY love cookies!
Shortbread Cookies have always been a weakness for me. They are just simple and pure deliciousness.
If you’re looking for buttery shortbread cookies loaded with chocolate, try my Salted Butter Chocolate Chunk Shortbread Cookie recipe!
They’re just so buttery and addicting!
Matt and I will literally kill an entire box of Walker’s or Lorna Doone’s in one sitting, they’re just so addictive.
You might remember me mentioning that Matt and I lived off shortbread cookies for a day in Scotland and I wasn’t totally sad about it 😉
Earl Grey Cookies Are Easy To Make!
I always thought they’d be difficult to make, but when I stumbled across this three-ingredient recipe from Dine & Dish, I was floored!
No Way!
With three ingredients, you’d think maybe they were lacking. Nope, not at all! The end result is deliciously irresistible butter cookies!
These simple shortbread cookies are everything I dreamed they would be!
I decided to adapt the recipe a bit by adding Earl Grey Tea leaves and using unsalted butter and adding my own salt for more control over the flavor.
My version is just 5 ingredients (6 if you decide to go with the lemon glaze – highly recommended)!
Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies Are Delicious!
The end result is perfectly crisp shortbread cookies that are so buttery they almost melt in your mouth.
An essence of Earl Grey tea takes them to a whole new level of flavor and fun!
They’re so good, I’m not even willing to share, you’ll all just have to make them yourselves!
They’re just the thing if you’re looking for a slightly sweet cookie fix!
More Delicious Cookie Recipes
- Vanilla Chai Shortbread Cookies
- Classic Sugar Cookies
- Irish Cream No Bake Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
Let’s Connect!
If you’ve tried this recipe, please let me know how you liked it in the comments below and leave a review. I love hearing from you!
Don’t forget to tag me – @sugarandsoulco – on Instagram and Pinterest with your photos or join our Sugar & Soul Show-offs Community and share them there, where you can join our recipe challenges!
This post was originally published in January 2015 and was updated in March 2019 with new photos.
Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 tablespoons Earl Grey tea leaves
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Blend the butter and earl grey tea leaves together and allow to sit at room temperature for at least 2 hours, longer is fine. If you are running short on time, this step can be skipped and the tea can be added with the powdered sugar. Just note that the flavor may not be as strong.
- Once the butter has finished setting. Preheat oven to 350° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Cream the butter and tea mixture and powdered sugar in a large bowl or stand mixer.
- Add in the flour and salt. Continue to mix until a soft dough forms. The mix will be dry and crumbly at first but will come together.
- Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface until it's 1/4-inch thick.
- Cut out cookies using a 2-inch round cookie cutter.
- Bake on a parchment lined baking sheet for 12 to 15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown in color.
- Once cooled, whisk together the glaze ingredients and dip or drizzle the cookies as desired and place on wax paper to set.
Video
Notes
- Slightly Adapted from Dine & Dish.
- If using a large loose leaf tea, run the tea through a food processor or use a pestle and mortar to ground it so it’s finer.
- 1 cookie is 3 Weight Watchers SmartPoints.
- The longer these cookies sit, the more intense the flavor will get.
- The recipe has been updated to include a tablespoon measurement for the tea leaves since it was originally published.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Comments & Reviews
Isabel M says
I have made this a couple times and it’s always a hit. For St. Patrick’s Day, I made a batch with green icing.
Note: icing is half lemon juice and half Sailor Jerry’s rum because I wanted them to be “Wellerman biscuits” based on the shanty song.
Angela says
Excellent recipe. I had a similar cookie at my local coffee shop which inspired me to hunt for this cookie. I was a bit skeptical when I first read the recipe for its simplicity and lemon glaze pairing. I made it and to my surprise it was a hit. Folks who appreciate Earl Grey tea will love this unique shortbread cookie. Glad I found it, definite keeper recipe! Thanks for sharing.
Veronica says
These were quite popular the first time I made them.
Planning on making another batch for an upcoming party.
Should I melt the butter and then mix the tea leaves?
Or should I blend them together in a food processor?
Rebecca Hubbell says
Don’t melt the butter. If you are planning to infuse in advance you can use a food processor or just let the butter soften and then stir it together and let it rest.
Andrea says
These are the best shortbread cookies I’ve ever made. It’s a family favorite.
Mari-Lynne Reid says
I have made these a dozen or more times. Easy and so delicious my friends call it “English Crack Cookies!”
Rebecca Hubbell says
Haha, love that name!
Ajanthia says
Can these be frozen? I’d like to try them for my son’s birthday party but pre-make the batter and bake them the day of. If you have any recommendations for freezing guidelines, would be much appreciated.
Rebecca Hubbell says
Yes, You can freeze them, though I do recommend cutting and flash freezing them first!
Christina says
These came out great! Nice and crispy/buttery with a good flavor. I used two packets of earl gray tea and that seemed to be enough. I then drizzled with the lemon icing. Will be making again!
Rebecca Hubbell says
I’m go glad you liked them! Thanks for leaving a review!
Kat says
So dry they were almost inedible, I’m not sure if it’s because of the season but they came out so dry and almost powdery. Flavor was pretty good but the texture made them just bad- would not recommend. Maybe try the butter infusing technique with different shortbread recipe.
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Kat, it sounds like maybe they weren’t mixed enough to start with? This should be crisp like a classic shortbread but not powdery – that’s usually a sign that the ingredients weren’t fully mixed. I’m sorry they didn’t turn out for you.
Brooke says
I’ve made this recipe for years, literally like 30 times. Everyone LOVES them! They always go on my christmas cookie tins. About to make them again for my friends birthday this weekend because these are her favorite cookies ever. *i always let the tea leaves steep in the butter. And I use nicer earl grey tea with bergamot
Rebecca Hubbell says
I’m so glad to hear that you love this recipe so much! Thanks for coming back to leave such a sweet comment! I hope you continue to enjoy them for years to come!
Sue says
These were beyond AMAZING! Made them as written-yum. Subbed lemon zest for tea and made glaze as written-yum, yum. Subbed orange zest for tea and orange juice for lemon in glaze-yum, yum, yum. Thanks to you I’ve got 3 variations of the same cookie. They make a wonderful assortment for a party and look lovely on the tray. They’ll be making an appearance on our Easter dessert table.