Rosemary Thyme Shortbread

ByDeanna Segrave-Daly
32 Comments

Nothing says holidays like homemade cookies and while I have the traditional ones - like press cookies, biscotti - I make every year, I always like trying a few new recipes to see if they are worthy of next year's baking rotation.

My Rosemary Thyme Shortbread have become one of the holiday staples that I give as gifts and add to the party cookie tray. Adapted years ago from a Gourmet magazine, this cookie was one of my first ventures into using savory herbs in a dessert. Rosemary was the star ingredient in the original recipe but I added thyme for an extra herbal punch in flavor and appearance. And while they're not the healthiest of offerings (they are cookies after all), I've tweaked the ingredients by cutting back on the butter (though still uses a whole stick) and adding some white whole wheat flour for extra fiber and texture.

These are the cookies that people will remember...and perhaps even request again next December.

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Rosemary & Thyme Shortbread Cookies

  • Yield: 16 cookies 1x
Print Recipe

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup white whole wheat flour
  • 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • Granulated sugar
  • Fresh rosemary springs
  • Fresh thyme sprigs

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
  2. In a bowl, whisk together flours, rosemary, thyme, baking powder and salt.
  3. In a separate bowl, beat together butter, powdered sugar and honey until well mixed (about 2 - 3 minutes.)
  4. Add flour mixture to butter mix and beat until resembles a coarse meal.
  5. Pat the dough together into a ball until smooth. Divide in half.
  6. For each half, roll out into a 8-inch circle on parchment paper.
  7. Score the edges with a fork as well as lines to divide into 8 pieces (like a pizza.)
  8. For each "slice", adorn with a small sprig of rosemary and thyme. Sprinkle each circle with a dash of granulated sugar.
  9. Bake for 20 minutes or until edges are just lightly browned.
  10. Cool on rack for 5 minutes then cut each circle into 8 pieces.

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Rosemary Thyme Shortbread

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32 Comments

  1. What beautiful shortbread!! I love the addition of herbs...and they make such a beautiful garnish! Magnificent!

  3. Just gorgeous! The photography is beautiful and the cookies, without a doubt must be absolutely scrumptious!

  5. I love the idea of using savory herbs in cookies - I have never done it before, but I'm really beginning to think I've been missing out. Thanks for sharing this beautiful recipe!

  6. I'm so loving these herb cookies!! Rosemary is definitely one of my favorites and perfect for the holidays!

  7. What lovely cookies. I've never tried adding herbs to a cookie before, now I'll have to give it a shot. Beautiful.

    1. Deb & Laura - definitely give those herbs in cookies a try - so delish 🙂

      Linda - I didn't like rosemary much until my taste buds matured but now one of my favorite herbs + agree it's so festive this time of year!

  8. i love how the rosemary and thyme have been weaved into the cookie! what a delight! #cookielove 🙂 so glad you are a part of our #lovebloghop!

    1. Junia - thank YOU for organizing these food love bloghops - I've learned so much from different ethic cuisine to gluten free techniques. So fun!

  9. What delicious flavors you have in this shortbread! Glad you joined CookieLove with us!

  10. i;d llove some of these herbed shortbreads anyday.. lovely change from all the chocolate cookies i usually end up baing this month!

  11. I can only imagine how fabulous the kitchen must smell when these are baking! Great #cookielove recipe.

  12. Love this shortbread!!! You should see all the rosemary growing in my garden right now 🙂 I'm definitely making a {gluten-free}batch of this delicious shortbread. Yes, definitely!

    1. EA - oooh I'm so envious of your rosemary plant (black thumb here.) I just swiped a bunch from my sister-in-law's garden to make a holiday wreath with kumquats (my lame Martha Stewart attempt.)

  13. I have a rosemary plant on my balcony, i'm sooo glad to have it! I make sooo many things with it, i'll try those rosemary shortbread 😉

  14. What a wonderful shortbread...
    Oh I can only imagine what wonderful aromas it must have filled your home with...
    Beautiful... Love all those herbs

    1. Reem - I just committed on your delish looking shortbread! Will definitely be making them and then maybe a chocolate shortbread too at this rate 🙂

  15. These look incredible. I'm making thyme shortbread right now, and they absolutely do not look like this. Will try your recipe next time.

  16. Ooh I love your savory cookie recipe! I want to make these and the other savory cookie I saw to my New Year's cheese plate instead of the boring old crackers. Thank you for sharing and nice hosting with you for #cookielove 🙂

    1. LOVE the idea of pairing with cheese! You could definitely cut down sugar to make it more savory, too.

  17. You had me at rosemary! That is seriously my favorite herb, the smell is beyond amazing:-) These cookies sound so light, and packed full of flavor:-) Beautiful, hugs, Terra

  19. Your shortbread looks delicious, especially with the herbs. Nice to have a savory cookie at this time of year.
    Lots of #cookielove and nice to be co-hosting with you.

  20. Pingback: Herb shortbread | Leadvilleheap

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