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Home » Baking » Danish Butter Cookies Recipe

Published: Apr 5, 2017 · Modified: Oct 5, 2020 by Sandhya Ramakrishnan · This post may contain affiliate links

Danish Butter Cookies Recipe

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If you love the store bought Danish Butter cookies in the blue tin that come around the Christmas season, then this is the recipe you need to make them at home. These cookies tastes amazingly buttery and have a lovely 'melt in the mouth' texture.

 Danish Butter Cookies

Danish Butter Cookies, just the name reminds me of the soft, melt in the mouth cookies. My first taste of the Danish cookies was the Royal Dansk Butter Cookies in the blue box. I would always crave for them when passing through the cookie aisles, especially during the holiday season.

One holiday season, I caved in and bought the huge gigantic tin of cookies. I ate so much of them that I had to stop thinking about them for a while.

These cookies are my boys favorite as well. My little one especially who likes his desserts to be on the mildly sweet side, likes the Danish cookies. When it was time to bake the Danish Butter Cookies for the alphabet D, I started off with the thought that it is a simple cookie and what can go wrong in it.

 Danish Butter Cookies 1

That is when I started experimenting with different ingredients and researching on the need of the ingredients that were listed on different recipes. I wanted to make the piped version of the cookies and made my first batch with the recipe I had come up with.

The cookies tasted great, had the most wonderful melt in the mouth texture, but they spread out quite a bit when baking. There were no swirls when the cookies came out. So i tweaked the quantity of the flour and it worked like a charm.

The difficulty I faced at this point was squeezing out the swirls. The cookie dough is on the stiff side and it was a task to squeeze them out. I still squeezed out a batch of the cookies and the last batch I decided were going to be rolled out into balls and baked. There was absolutely no compromise on the flavors and the cookies had the same pale color and texture to it.

 Danish Butter Cookies 2

Coconut or almond flour?

The Royal Dansk Danish Cookies has some coconut in it, but I decided to use almond flour instead. When I was thinking of melt in the mouth texture, the first thought that came to me was the French Macaroons.

I had made the French Macaroons few years back and they came out absolutely marvelous on my first try. That was the first time I had ever worked with almond flour and cream of tartar. I fell in love with the almond flour/meal since then and use them quite often. In fact my first recipe for this marathon was the Almond cookies made with almond meal.

I also used the cream of tartar in this recipe along with baking soda to enable the acid-base reaction which would result in the airy texture of the cookies. If you don't have cream of tartar, then skip both the baking soda and the cream of tartar and use about ½ tsp of Baking powder.

Preparation time - 10 minutes
Baking time - 10 - 12 minutes
Difficulty level - Intermediate

Ingredients to make Danish Cookies - Makes about 30 small cookies

  • Unsalted Butter (Softened and at room temperature) - 8 tbsp (1 stick)
  • Confectionery sugar / powdered sugar - ⅔ cup
  • Egg - 1 (large)
  • Vanilla extract - ½ tsp
  • Baking soda - ½ tsp
  • Cream of tartar - ¼ tsp
  • All purpose flour - 1 ¼ cup
  • Almond flour - ¼
cookies arranged in tin

Procedure -

  • Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and keep it ready.
  • Cream together the butter and the sugar until it is pale and very creamy.
  • Add the baking soda, cream of tartar, egg and vanilla and beat again until well combined.
  • Add the almond flour and the all purpose flour in batches and beat well after each addition.
  • The cookie dough will be pretty stiff. The consistency of the cookie dough will be such that they can be rolled easily to be shaped as balls to bake the cookies.
Dough for butter cookies
  • I used a disposable pastry bag attached with a large star nozzle to pipe out the swirls with the cookies. I started out with 1 cup of flour to make the dough earlier and it was very easy to pipe out. But these cookies spread out quite a bit when baking and that is when I realized that we needed a little extra flour.
Piped cookie dough on a baking tray
  • I added the extra flour, and squeezed out the spirals. It was quite hard to squeeze out, but they made very pretty shape. The next batch, I decided not to pipe the dough as my palms were hurting and hence just rolled out small balls of dough and made a simple indentation with fork on top.
  • Bake the cookies for about 10 to 12 minutes or just until the edges start to brown.
Baked Cookies in rack
Left - cookies that had spread out. Right - Cookies that retained the shape
  • Cool entirely on a cooling rack and the store in an airtight container.
Danish Butter Cookies arranged in cookie tin

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Danish Butter Cookies top view

More melt in the Mouth Cookies

Old Fashioned Ginger Cookies - These old fashioned ginger cookies are a must in our holiday cookie baking list. My boys love this cookie and we usually start out our baking marathon with these.

Vannilekipferl - These Austrian Vanilla Crescent Cookies are so delicate and they literally melt in the mouth. These are a great option for cookie exchange or for gifting.

Peanut Butter Whole wheat Honey Cookies - This is a must bake recipe for peanut butter lovers. Made with whole wheat flour and sweetened with honey, these cookies are healthy and very simple to make.

Nan Khatai - This Indian version of shortbread cookie is very popular and is made for gifting during the Diwali festival. The Nan khatai is baked with ghee and is flavored with cardamom.

Mexican Wedding Cookies - These are the most delicate and easiest of the cookies to bake for a crowd. Baked with nuts and rolled in sugar, these cookies are so quick to make.

 If you made this recipe and liked it, give a star rating on the recipe card or let me know in the comments below. You could also share it with me on Instagram using #MyCookingJourney and tagging me @sandhya.ramakrishnan. You could follow me and my recipes on Facebook |Instagram | Pinterest | twitter

danish butter cookies

Danish Butter Cookies Recipe

If you love the store bought Danish cookies in the blue tin that comes out around the Christmas season, then this is the recipe you need to make them at home. These cookies tastes amazingly buttery and have a lovely 'melt in the mouth' texture.
0 from 0 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Cookies
Cuisine: European
Diet: Vegetarian
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 22 minutes
Servings: 30 cookies
Calories: 60kcal
Author: Sandhya Ramakrishnan

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer
  • Oven

Ingredients

  • 8 tbsp (1 Stick ) Unsalted Butter Softened and at room temperature
  • ⅔ cup Confectionery sugar / powdered sugar
  • 1 Egg large
  • ½ tsp Vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp Baking soda
  • ¼ tsp Cream of tartar
  • 1 ¼ cup All purpose flour
  • ¼ Almond flour

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and keep it ready.
  • Cream together the butter and the sugar until it is pale and very creamy.
  • Add the baking soda, cream of tartar, egg and vanilla and beat again until well combined.
  • Add the almond flour and the all purpose flour in batches and beat well after each addition.
  • The cookie dough will be pretty stiff. The consistency of the cookie dough will be such that they can be rolled easily to be shaped as balls to bake the cookies.
  • I used a disposable pastry bag attached with a large star nozzle to pipe out the swirls with the cookies. I started out with 1 cup of flour to make the dough earlier and it was very easy to pipe out. But these cookies spread out quite a bit when baking and that is when I realized that we needed a little extra flour.
  • I added the extra flour, and squeezed out the spirals. It was quite hard to squeeze out, but they made very pretty shape. The next batch, I decided not to pipe the dough as my palms were hurting and hence just rolled out small balls of dough and made a simple indentation with fork on top.
  • Bake the cookies for about 10 to 12 minutes or just until the edges start to brown.
  • Cool entirely on a cooling rack and the store in an airtight container.

Nutrition

Calories: 60kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 24mg | Potassium: 12mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 106IU | Calcium: 3mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @Sandhya.Ramakrishnan or tag #MyCookingJourney!
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. chicken shawarma recipe says

    October 20, 2017 at 5:41 am

    Best ever cookies i ever tried. My kids love it.

    Reply
  2. Sapna says

    May 07, 2017 at 1:57 pm

    Same pinch, I too bake them for the letter. Yours looks amazing and love the pictures too.

    Reply
  3. ruchi indu says

    May 05, 2017 at 4:59 am

    Tes, they truly are "melt in my mouth" cookies. Very very buttery...

    Reply
  4. Maha Khan says

    April 17, 2017 at 9:04 am

    there are good recipes website I am very happy to visit your website for learning latest and new delicious recipes.

    Reply
  5. Olivia Mesquita says

    April 14, 2017 at 10:15 pm

    Ahh those look delicious! We've had occasional sessions of experimentation trying to get a recipe right the way you describe. Glad to see you got what you were going after 🙂

    Reply
  6. Srividhya Gopalakrishnan says

    April 12, 2017 at 11:18 am

    You have an awesome job of swirling. I can imagine how hard it would have been. Love both the shapes as you said when there is no compromise in taste, why to bother about the shape. Great Share.

    Reply
  7. Kylee from Kylee Cooks says

    April 11, 2017 at 3:30 pm

    I love Christmas time when the big blue tins of these cookies are passed to friends as gifts. I like being the friend they're passed to. I never considered making my own - how silly is that? Now I can have them any time of year!

    Reply
  8. Kelly @ Trial and Eater says

    April 11, 2017 at 12:56 pm

    love butter cookies! I also love that the ingredient list is simple. I'm sure the almond flour added a unique flavor!

    Reply
  9. Marisa Franca @ All Our Way says

    April 11, 2017 at 10:08 am

    What delicate looking cookies. They do look like they would melt in your mouth. I never purchase store bought cookies - they just don't have the taste of a bakery's or homemade. Your cookies look amazing. I've already pinned the recipe.

    Reply
  10. Veena Azmanov says

    April 11, 2017 at 7:39 am

    Love some good Danish cookies..!! I use to buy the store bought all the time until I started making them at home. You recipe sounds so simple and easy. Think I'll try it soon.

    Reply
  11. Adriana Lopez Martn says

    April 11, 2017 at 12:55 am

    Lovely idea to make homemade butter cookies. I remember these form my childhood but were bought and in my family were kept as a special treat. I wish I can try one of your cookies now.

    Reply
  12. Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day says

    April 10, 2017 at 10:52 pm

    These cookies look mouth-watering! I might need to make some of these for my friend's birthday.

    Reply
  13. Renz says

    April 10, 2017 at 8:12 pm

    We would kill those danish cookies during Christmas as a kid. My mom had to hide the tin else we would finish them in one day. Great that you are able to replicate. They look awesome

    Reply
  14. Dene' V. Alexander says

    April 10, 2017 at 4:16 pm

    These cookies look exactly like the ones you get out of the tin at Christmas time. If they taste ANYTHING like those, you have hit the jackpot with this recipe!! Wonderful share on your blog!!

    Reply
  15. Dene' V. Alexander says

    April 10, 2017 at 4:16 pm

    These cookies look exactly like the ones you get out of the tin at Christmas time. If they takes ANYTHING like those, you have hit the jackpot with this recipe!!

    Reply
  16. Pam says

    April 10, 2017 at 2:59 pm

    I haven't had Danish butter cookies in ages. This recipe is making me want some as soon as possible!

    Reply
  17. Priya Suresh says

    April 08, 2017 at 12:31 pm

    Wow, danish butter cookies looks absolutely divine, just love this melt in mouth cookies. Send me some please.

    Reply
  18. Pavani says

    April 06, 2017 at 4:43 pm

    Your Danish cookies look great Sandhya. They look like they'll melt in the mouth.

    Reply
  19. Vaishali Sabnani says

    April 06, 2017 at 1:13 am

    Sandhya, I have always loved these cookies..nostalgic memories of the blue box, though they have come up with loads of variations..but nothing like home made ones, specially if Sandhya bakes.:))

    Reply
  20. traditionallymodernfood says

    April 05, 2017 at 1:28 pm

    I m loving this series. LEarning lot of new recipes. Danish cookies come out wel. my son would put swirl cookies in his finger and play like a disk i guess:-)

    Reply
  21. Veena Krishnakumar says

    April 05, 2017 at 12:32 pm

    I havent yet baked these beauties. The swirls looks awesome Sandhya

    Reply
  22. summaiya says

    April 05, 2017 at 10:06 am

    Very nice

    Reply
  23. harini says

    April 05, 2017 at 9:18 am

    These buttery cookies were the first cookies I tasted after landing in the USA 17 years ago. I remember the blue box which you mentioned as well 🙂 Fantastic replication of those Danish Cookies. Thanks for refreshing my memory !

    Reply
  24. PRADNYA says

    April 05, 2017 at 8:30 am

    childhood memories, every mom of my generation has the danish cookie box converted to jewellery - ur cookies are surreal...so close to the original ones...

    Reply
  25. Srivalli Jetti says

    April 05, 2017 at 7:49 am

    Oh my those cookies are looking so fabulous Sandhya!...love those shapes..and so nicely done...I still remember so buttery those Danish biscuits we got from there..yum!

    Reply
  26. Sowmya says

    April 05, 2017 at 6:54 am

    I am a huge admirer of the Danish cookies too. Yours look so divine and lip smacking! Amazing that you went into so many iterations to get it right. I have to bake these at the earliest!

    Reply

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Sandhya

I am Sandhya Ramakrishnan, author, recipe developer and photographer in this journey! 'My Cooking Journey' is all about family friendly Vegetarian and Vegan recipes from around the World with focus on Indian cuisine.

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