These Vanilla Chai Shortbread Cookies are simple to make with just butter, flour, sugar, and tea, they have a little spice and a whole lot of cozy!
Vanilla Chai Shortbread Cookies
These Vanilla Chai Shortbread Cookies are one of my most popular recipes here on the blog and once you try them, you’ll know why! You’ll find their buttery, spicy, deliciousness hard to resist and they’re perfect for a cookie swap!
Can you believe another year has pretty much come and gone? Each year in early December, I participate in The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap.
Basically, a bunch of food bloggers make cookies (no surprise there) and we each get the names of three others to send our cookies to.
And then we get cookies from three other bloggers! Don’t forget to scroll down to the bottom to enter to win $400 in cash and check out 25 of the best Christmas cookies recipes around!
But you know what the best part is, though? Yes, even better than giving and receiving awesome cookies. Is that we all do this for a greater cause.
We team up with Cookies for Kids’ Cancer every year and donate to this amazing charity while spreading tons and tons of cookie joy!
Then we have companies like Land O’Lakes, Dixie Crystals, and OXO who support us along the way! That’s pretty incredible, right? I think so!
It’s pretty much the coolest thing ever and I always get really anxious waiting for my cookies to come and waiting for the reactions from those who received them from me.
This year I actually had two friends who received my cookies: Julie from Bread Booze Bacon and April from Mama Loves Food.
It was funny because when I posted a teaser picture of these cookies on Instagram, they both commented unknowing that some were already on their way to each of their doorsteps!
But anyways, you’re probably here for the good stuff, not all the mumbo-jumbo of how this recipe came to be, right?
The good stuff is these cookies. These crisp and buttery shortbread cookies are laced with vanilla chai tea leaves and then dipped in a vanilla spice icing for the full effect.
Did you know that Chai just means tea, what we often think of as Chai here in the states is actually Masala Chai which originated in India and is made with black tea, Indian spices, milk, and sugar?
We just shortened it up as we often do and now associate Chai with creamy lattes rather than the straight-up tea the word actually means.
Tools You’ll Need For This Recipe:
- Chai tea – I recommend just using the tea from tea bags, just cut the bags open and dump the tea into the butter for mixing. I like these teas because the leaves tend to be smaller and work great for this recipe.
- Rolling pin – You’ll need to roll out your dough before cutting.
- Cookie Cutters – You can make fun shapes or keep it simple with round cookie cutters.
- Parchment paper – It’s important to line your cookie sheet with parchment paper for best results.
- Cookie sheet – For baking the cookies on!
More Delicious Cookie Recipes:
- Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies
- Brown Butter Toffee Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Sticks
- Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies
- Butterbeer Pudding Cookies
- Salted Chocolate Chunk Shortbread
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!
Vanilla Chai Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 bags of Vanilla Chai Tea loose
Icing:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- Cream butter and confectioners sugar in a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
- Add in flour, salt, and loose tea leaves. continue to mix until a soft dough forms, the mix will be dry and crumbly at first but will come together.
- Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface until it’s ¼ inch thick.
- Cut out cookies using a 2 in round cookie cutter.
- Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 18-20 minutes or until edges are a golden brown and transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Once cooled, whisk together icing ingredients until smooth. Dip half of each cookie in the icing, let excess drip off and run a spoon along the edge to remove any extra, then place on wax paper to set.
Video
Notes
- For a stronger initial flavor, mix the butter and tea leaves together about 6 hours ahead of time to infuse.
- For more, smaller cookies, use a 1 1/2 in round cookie cutter and bake for 12-15 minutes. Will yield around 36 cookies.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
Don’t forget to share it with me on Instagram @sugarandsoulco and follow on Tiktok @sugarandsoulco and Pinterest @sugarandsoulco for more!
Comments & Reviews
Moni says
These cookies were great and easy to make. I added lavender to mine to make them like a tea I get at a local coffee shop.
Penny says
These are absolutely the BEST shortbread cookies I have ever tasted & everyone at our holiday party agreed. Getting ready to make my 6th batch this week. I do like the glaze over the entire top of cookie as well. I’m totally obsessed with this cookie!
Cindy says
I thought I was the only one who got obsessed with recipes !! 😉💙💖
Penny says
These are absolutely the BEST shortbread cookies I have ever tasted & everyone at our holiday party agreed. Getting ready to make my 6th batch this week. I do like the glaze over the entire to of cookie as well. I’m totally obsessed with this cookie!
Sara says
These are simple yet delicious! And they whip up so easily. I used my stand mixer and the dough came together perfectly and with basically no effort. I think I rolled mine out too thin because they were pretty fragile. I will make them a bit thicker next time and they will be perfect. I got tons of compliments on these. I will be making these every holiday season (and the rest of the year too!)
Rebecca Hubbell says
I’m so glad you loved them, Sara! Thank you for leaving such a nice comment!
Katie says
These are incredible. I made them with Bobs 1 to 1 gf flour, swerve powder sugar and lactose free butter I formed the dough (wrapped in parchment) into a rectangle, chilled it and sliced it into perfect cookies. They turned out AMAZING. So so good. Lightly chai, just that hint of sweet and the perfect shortbread texture. I can’t even imagine what they’re like “regularly “ aka without all my substitutions for dietary needs lol. Thanks for a new Christmas cookie go to!
Lisa Adams says
This is so helpful because I too am not supposed to have gluten or dairy but was going to just do it anyway for sake of these cookies and suffer!! But now that I know
They came out great using bobs red bill flour, im not worried about swapping ingredients!!!
Ruth Kenna says
Last Christmas I made up little cello bags with these cookies, recipe and a box of double spice chai tea bags to gift to friends and family – this was a huge hit!! Everyone LOVED the cookies, they are just delicious and an interesting twist on the classic shortbread cookie. I highly recommend this recipe, just yummy and so quick and easy to make. (they smell amazing too!) Thanks for sharing!
Rebecca Hubbell says
I’m so glad they were a hit and thank you so much for making my recipes and coming back to leave such a sweet comment.
Jocelyn says
Hi, I was just curious how long these cookies last? Thanks!
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Jocelyn, Shortbread cookies will last 3 to 4 weeks when stored in an airtight container in a cool room.
Jaclyn says
I’ll be making these for a tea party! So excited. Question, how exactly do I infuse the the tea leaves and butter? Do I mix them together in a mixer?
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Jaclyn, let your butter soften and then use a spoon or fork to mix with the tea leaves and let it sit covered at room temperature until you’re ready to use.
Melanie says
Question can you add food coloring to the icing? I want to play with shapes and decorating
Rebecca Hubbell says
Yes, you can!
Kylie says
I struggled with the dough being sticky. I wasn’t able to roll out with a rolling pin. Any suggestions.
Rebecca Hubbell says
Make sure to flour your rolling pin and surface well. You can add a bit extra flour if needed or try chilling the dough for 30 minutes. Was it warm or humid while you were baking?
kylie gonnering says
I did all of those. It was a little warm yesterday
Heather MacLeish says
These cookies are incredible! I made them for thanksgiving and again at Christmas, and got rave reviews. The only thing I did differently was to just form the dough in a log, refrigerate it for a while, and then cut and bake. They’re melt in your mouth delicious, so good! Not sure how the texture changes from rolling them out, but they are perfect as cut and bakes. Also skipped the icing because no one in my family likes sweets, but, like I said, these cookies are perfection!! Thank you!!
Rebecca Hubbell says
So glad you enjoyed them!
Sara says
Will these cookies hold their shape? Such as a Christmas tree cookie cutter?
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Sara, yes they will. They don’t expand at all 🙂
Vicky says
Does this recipe call for unbleached or bleached flour? Thank you!
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Vicky, either can be used.
Lynne Bailey says
Delicious cookies, flavorful, crispy, crunchy, my new favorite cookie. I have made several batches and they freeze very well. Just glaze after thawing. I prefer to glaze the entire cookie top and sprinkle with some cinnamon. I can’t wait to share with family and friends. Thanks so much!
Rebecca Hubbell says
So glad you enjoyed them, Lynne!
joumana says
Easy my foot. You gotta be leaving something out. They will not come together for anything. Save time and skip this
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi there, Nothing has been left out of the3 written recipe, this is a shortbread cookie and it needs to be mixed for several minutes to turn from a crumble to a dough, just keep mixing until it does and once it does it should be very easy to work with.
Krystie says
I added my flour in a half-cup at a time and it all came together very nicely. I have run into the same problem in the past with shortbread cookies and really do think adding the flour slowly helps.
Devin says
Hi! These cookies look amazing but I don’t have any vanilla chai tea, I just have normal chai tea. Do you think I’d be able to add vanilla to the dough to make up for it?
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Devin, I would just used the chai tea and maybe add a little extra vanilla to the glaze.
Donna P. says
These cookies are in my oven and they smell delicious! My Tai Chi class is having a party and thought these would be perfect since I always call it my Chai Tea class! lol!
Rebecca Hubbell says
Love it, hope you all enjoy!
Michele says
Hey, these cookies look amazing! But dairy and I aren’t friends… what would you suggest to use in place of the butter? Would a butter like earth balance work?
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Michele, I have had good luck with Earth Balance before in other baking recipes, but have never tried it with this one. I think it would be okay though!
Tessa says
Made these today as a homemade gift. Just beautiful (I did have to taste test). Didnt have enough powdered sugar to do icing but they were so good even without. Thank you, I’ll be adding to my list of favourites
Rebecca Hubbell says
I’m so glad you loved them, Tessa!
Bobbi says
These cookies are really good , I made them to give out at Christmas and wanted to keep them for myself. Definitely will make these again.
Rebecca Hubbell says
I’m so glad you enjoyed them, Bobbi! Happy Holidays to you and yours!