55 short bread recipes

Mohn kuchen: a traditional German poppy seed cake with a pressed shortbread base, creamy cooked poppy seed filling, and buttery streusel top. Dense, nutty, old-world dessert.

Buttery shortbread crust topped with gooey pecan-coconut filling creates bar cookies that taste like pecan pie without the fussy pastry work.

Coconut dream bars with a brown sugar oat shortbread base topped with a chewy layer of shredded coconut, pecans, lemon zest, and brown sugar. Two layers, two textures, one irresistible bar cookie.

Buttery shortbread cookies topped with caramel, coated in melted chocolate, and pressed with chopped pecans. Homemade Turtle-style candy cookies that make a gorgeous gift box treat.

Date pecan snowball cookies rolled in powdered sugar with a buttery, crumbly shortbread base. No eggs, no leavening, just butter, flour, dates, and pecans.

London strips: layered cookie bars with a buttery shortbread base, strawberry jam filling, and a bourbon-walnut meringue topping dusted with powdered sugar.

Apple dessert bars with a buttery shortbread crust, cinnamon-lemon apple layer, and a rich coconut-nut custard topping that bakes into chewy squares.

Cranberry orange tart with a buttery almond shortbread crust and glistening marmalade-glazed cranberry filling. A stunning make-ahead holiday dessert that chills overnight.

Mocha nut butter balls: tender, snowball-style shortbread cookies flavored with cocoa and instant coffee, packed with toasted walnuts or pecans, rolled in sugar.

Almond Butter Cookie Sandwiches: tender shortbread-style cookies made with ground almonds, sandwiched with raspberry jam or chocolate ganache. Linzer-style elegance, makes 24.

Better than sex cake is a four-layer chocolate-pecan icebox dessert: a buttery pecan shortbread crust, sweet cream cheese, chocolate pudding, and whipped topping. A make-ahead potluck legend.

Buttery pecan snowball cookies rolled in powdered sugar. No eggs, no leavening, just six ingredients for a crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth shortbread-style cookie.

Rolled and cut oatmeal cookies with finely chopped rolled oats worked into a buttery shortbread-style dough. Holds shape through cutting, perfect for cookie decorating.

Fig chess tarts with a buttery lemon-scented shortbread shell, filled with brown sugar custard studded with chopped dried figs and walnuts. A Southern chess pie translated into bite-sized tart form.

A layered Southern dessert with a buttery pecan shortbread crust, creamy sweet potato and cream cheese filling, and billowy whipped topping. Crunchy, creamy, and utterly indulgent.

A stunning fresh strawberry pie with a buttery pecan shortbread crust, whipped cream cheese filling, and whole berries glazed in homemade strawberry sauce. Worth every minute.