Special Shortbread Macaroon Cookies Perfect for Christmas
These special shortbread macaroon cookies have everything I love in a Christmas cookie. They start with a buttery shortbread base and are topped with a chewy caramel coconut macaroon filling, chopped almonds, and a simple chocolate drizzle. A tiny sprinkle of sea salt finishes them off.
They look like an extra special Christmas cookie, but they are surprisingly easy to make. The caramel layer uses purchased caramels, so there is no candy making involved, and there is no chilling, rolling, or fancy decorating either.
How to Make Shortbread Macaroon Cookies
These special cookies consist of three layers: shortbread, melted caramel, and salted chocolate. Here are all the ingredients you will need.
Shortbread Ingredients
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 cup icing sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup butter, softened
Caramel Macaroon Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 50 caramels, unwrapped
- 5 cups shredded coconut
- 1 cup coarsely chopped almonds
Chocolate Topping Ingredients
- 2 cups Belgian melting chocolate
- Sea salt, for sprinkling
Step 1: Make the Shortbread Layer
In the bowl of a stand mixer, sift together the cornstarch, icing sugar, and flour. Add the butter and mix until a soft dough forms.
If the dough seems a little crumbly, add another tablespoon or two of butter until it comes together.
Preheat the oven to 325°F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Roll the dough into small 1/2-inch balls and place them on the parchment-lined cookie sheets. Press flat with the bottom of a glass or the flat palm of your hand.
Bake at 325°F until the edges are slightly golden, about 15 minutes. Let cool.
Step 2: Make the Caramel Macaroon Layer
Fill the bottom of a double boiler with 2 to 3 inches of water. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can use a medium-sized saucepan and a metal bowl. Place the metal bowl over the saucepan, making sure it doesn’t touch the water.
Heat the water to boiling, then reduce the heat to medium.
Melt the butter and add the cream before adding the caramels. This helps prevent the caramel from sticking to the pan. Add the unwrapped caramels.
Stir until melted. The mixture will be smooth and look just like you made it from scratch.
Add the coconut and almonds and stir until well mixed. The almonds are an extra little surprise in the middle. Remove from the heat.
Using a cookie scoop or spoon, place a small scoop on top of each shortbread cookie. The sticky caramel helps adhere the macaroon filling to the cookie, and the macaroon keeps its shape.
Step 3: Add the Chocolate Topping
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or place it in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring well after each interval until smooth.
Drizzle the melted chocolate over the top of the cookies.
While the chocolate is still warm, sprinkle a tiny bit of sea salt over the top.
These special shortbread macaroon cookies are rich, chewy, buttery, and just a little bit salty from the sea salt on top. A couple of mine never made it to the freezer, but most were wrapped and tucked into a container to save for Christmas.
Shortbread Macaroon Cookies
Ingredients
Shortbread Base
- ½ cup cornstarch
- ½ cup icing sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup butter softened
Macaroon Filling
- 5 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- 50 caramels
- 5 cups shredded coconut
- 1 cup almonds chopped coarsely
Chocolate Drizzle
- 2 cups Belgian melting chocolate
- sea salt for sprinkling
Instructions
Shortbread Layer
- Sift together the cornstarch, icing sugar, and all purpose flour.
- Add the softened butter and mix until a soft dough forms.
- Roll into small 1/2 balls, place on parchment lined baking sheet. Press flat with the bottom of a glass.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll the dough into small 1/2-inch balls and place them on the prepared cookie sheets. Press flat with the bottom of a glass or the flat palm of your hand.
- Bake at 325°F until the edges are slightly golden, about 15 minutes. Let cool.
Caramel Macaroon Filling
- Fill the bottom of a double boiler with 2 to 3 inches of water. Heat the water to boiling, then reduce the heat to medium.
- Melt the butter and add the cream, then add the unwrapped caramels. Stir until melted and smooth.
- Add the shredded coconut and chopped almonds. Stir until well mixed, then remove from the heat.
- Using a cookie scoop or spoon, place a small scoop of the caramel macaroon filling on top of each shortbread cookie. Let cool.
Chocolate Topping
- Melt the Belgian melting chocolate in a double boiler, or in the microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring after each interval until smooth.
- Drizzle the melted chocolate over the cookies. While the chocolate is still warm, sprinkle a little sea salt over the top.
Notes
- If the shortbread dough is crumbly, add another tablespoon or two of butter until it gathers into a dough.
- Whipping cream can be replaced with canned milk.
- Once completely cooled, store the cookies in an airtight container. They can also be wrapped well and frozen for Christmas.
Save this special Christmas cookie recipe to your holiday baking board so you can find it when you are ready to bake. These shortbread macaroon cookies are rich, chewy, chocolatey, and perfect for a Christmas cookie tray.
More Christmas Treats to Make
Christmas Chocolate Covered Graham Crackers
These easy chocolate-covered graham crackers are a simple Christmas treat with plenty of chocolate and festive toppings.
Christmas Saltine Toffee
This classic Christmas saltine toffee is crisp, buttery, chocolatey, and perfect for adding to a holiday treat tray.
These look and sound so decadent, Leanna. My coffee needs one of these cookies this morning! Pinned
These look amazing!!
These look absolutely delicous. I will be trying them.