This salted rye shortbread comes together with just 5 ingredients! The rye flour lends a nutty and earthy flavor while a sprinkle of flaky salt balances all of the flavors and enhances the sweetness. These shortbread cookies are equally delicious when made with vegan butter or standard unsalted butter depending on your dietary needs.
A bag of whole grain Danko Rye flour from Barton Springs Mill led to the creation of these simple but super flavorful shortbread cookies. The rye flour gives them a nutty and almost earthy flavor along with a gorgeous color! For this shortbread, I went with the slice and bake method. Once the shortbread dough is made, it’s shaped into a log, then chilled until firm. This allows the log to easily be sliced then baked. These shortbread cookies are lovely paired with coffee or tea but they can also be dunked into a bit of melted chocolate if you prefer something a little more decadent!
Notes on Ingredients and Substitutions
I’ve tested these with both vegan butter and regular salted butter and each produces delicious results. If you opt for vegan butter, make sure to use one made for baking that is either sold in sticks or in a block. If you only have unsalted butter, make sure to add a pinch of salt to the dough. These cookies rely on nutty rye flour for their flavor but can also be made with an equal amount of all-purpose flour by weight for a standard plain shortbread.
Baking by Weight
This recipe is based off the shortbread baking ratio which is 1 part sugar to 2 parts fat (butter) to 3 parts flour. In order to bake by ratio, the ingredient amounts are listed by weight in grams. This allows for accurate and reliable results while also making it super easy to sub in different ingredients like vegan butter or standard all-purpose flour for the rye flour. I do NOT recommend trying to convert the weight measurements into volume. Instead, you’ll need an inexpensive kitchen scale that can measure weight in grams.
Salted Rye Shortbread
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 14–16 cookies 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This salted rye shortbread comes together with just 5 ingredients! The rye flour lends a nutty and earthy flavor while a sprinkle of flaky salt balances all of the flavors and enhances the sweetness. These shortbread cookies are equally delicious when made with vegan butter or standard unsalted butter depending on your dietary needs.
Ingredients
- 50g granulated sugar
- 100g salted butter, softened to room temp
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 150g rye flour
- flaky sea salt, for sprinkling on top
Instructions
In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, cream the sugar and softened butter together until fluffy and the sugar has dissolved. This will take 2-3 minutes in a stand mixer on medium low speed. Mix in the vanilla. With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour. Stop the mixer once a crumbly dough forms.
Dump out the dough onto a piece of parchment or plastic wrap. Using your hands, shape it into a log that is about 6 inches long and about 2 inches in diameter. Wrap the log, then place it in the fridge to chill for at least one hour. You can easily do this part a day ahead of time if you like.
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees and line a standard baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat. Remove the dough from the fridge and unwrap it. Using a very sharp knife, carefully slice the dough log into rounds that are roughly 1/4-inch thick in diameter. Place the slices of dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the tops with a bit of coarse sea salt. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the bottom edges are just beginning to get a hint of color. Cool at least 15 minutes on the baking sheet before moving the cookies to a rack to cool completely.
Notes
- To make this recipe vegan, use a vegan block butter meant for baking.
- This recipe requires the use of a kitchen scale that can measure weight in grams.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Chilling Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 10-12 minutes
- Category: dessert
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