Espresso Cookies are classic buttery shortbread cookies with a delightful crunch, rich espresso flavor and filled with a luxurious espresso cream.
Espresso Cookies or latte cookies are a twist on traditional shortbread cookies made with staple ingredients – butter, sugar, vanilla, flour, salt. The addition of espresso powder gives them amazing color and flavor.
Espresso Cookies are incredible with a cup of latte. You can sweeten them up by spreading luxuriously creamy espresso cream filling onto them and turning them into Espresso Sandwich Cookies!
These cookies stack up better than the rest! They keep well and make beautiful gifts for friends, family, neighbors and co-workers! Tie a stack with “wishing you a latte joy” and “sending you a latte love” free printable gift tags (below).
Why You’ll Love Espresso Cookies
- Easy to Make
- Beautiful Gift
- Amazing Espresso Flavor
Ingredients and Substitutions
(An overview, see printable recipe card below)
- Butter – Unsalted butter at room temperature for best results. To substitute salted butter, eliminate the salt in this recipe.
- Sugar – White granulated sugar sweetens the cookie and balances the espresso.
- Vanilla Extract – Adds a hint of flavor – learn how to make Homemade Vanilla Extract here, which makes another amazing gift.
- All Purpose Flour – Sift and spoon flour into a measuring cup for accuracy. This prevents the cookies from being dry.
- Espresso Powder – Espresso powder adds amazing flavor and beautiful specks. This espresso powder blends seamlessly into recipes. If you’re in a pinch with something easy to find in your grocery store, this espresso powder is a great alternative.
- Salt – Salt brings out all the other flavors in baked goods.
Variations
- For a less espresso flavor, use instant coffee instead.
- Substitute almond extract for vanilla extract.
- Drizzle glaze over the top for added sweetness.
How to Make Espresso Cookies
- Prep – Preheat oven.
- Make Dough – In a mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine sugar, butter and vanilla. Gradually add flour, salt and espresso powdered until well combined.
- Chill Dough – Shape dough into a disc, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate to chill.
- Bake – On a floured surface, roll out dough and cut into shapes, bake and enjoy!
- Fill – Allow to cool and add the optional espresso cream filling for an extra indulgent treat. It’s so good I could eat it by the spoonful!
Tips
- Sift and Spoon Flour to Measure – Shortbread cookies require accurate measurements to prevent them from tasting dry.
- Roll Evenly – Use a precision rolling pin to maintain 1/4″ thickness for even baking and accuracy. Thinner cookies may become dry.
- Use a Gold Cookie Sheet – Light cookie sheets prevent your cookies from over-baking. Dark sheets absorb more heat, browning cookies much faster.
- Bake on Middle Rack – Placement in the oven can drastically change the results of shortbread cookies. Place the cookie sheet on middle rack of a preheated oven for even baking.
- Transfer to a Cooling Rack – Remove cookies from the oven and allow to cool 1 minute. Use a silicone cookie spatula to transfer cookies to a wire cooking rack. Cookies continue to bake on a hot baking sheet, resulting in a dry texture.
Dietary Considerations
- Nut Free
- Vegetarian
- For Gluten Free, substitute 1:1 gluten free flour
Frequently Asked Questions
Espresso deepens the flavor of these cookies, creating a subtle, but not overpowering fragrance and taste of coffee.
Espresso is an incredible flavor enhancement and is used in a wide variety of savory recipes, as well. Espresso doesn’t necessarily make your baked goods taste like coffee – it just creates more depth of flavor!
To Store
- At Room Temperature – Store in an airtight container up to one week.
- Refrigerator – These cookies do not need to be stored in the fridge, but if you choose to do so, store them in an airtight container for up to one week.
- Freeze – Store in an airtight container or freezer bag, unfilled, up to 3 months.
Gifting
- Download Free Printable Gift Tags (These can also be paired with loaves of Latte Bread)
- Print on basic or textured card stock, cut and punch a hole.
- Stack in cellophane bags, pull ribbon through the hole in the gift tag and tie the bag closed with a bow.
Create a Coffee Lover’s Gift Basket
Choose a new coffee mug, favorite espresso beans, and more. Paired with these espresso cookies it’s an instant win!
Wishing you a latte joy this holiday season.
Espresso Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour sifted and spooned into measuring cup for accuracy
- 3 tablespoons espresso powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Espresso Cream Filling
- 2 tablespoons hot tap water
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder heaping
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 2½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, beat to combine butter, sugar and vanilla.
- Gradually add flour, espresso powder and salt. Mix until just combined.
- On plastic wrap dusted with flour, press dough into a disc shape (like a thick plate), wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes. While the dough chills, preheat oven to 350°F.
- On a lightly floured surface or parchment paper, roll dough to ¼" thick. Cut dough into shapes and peel excess dough dough away. Transfer parchment paper filled with cutouts onto a light colored cookie sheet.
- Bake on the middle rack of preheated oven for 15 minutes or until just set (based on a 3" cookie). Remove cookies from the oven and allow to cool 1 minute. Use a silicone spatula to transfer to a wire cooling rack to set. (This prevents the cookies from continuing to bake on the hot cookie sheet)
Fill
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine hot tap water, espresso powder, softened butter, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.
- Spread onto the bottom of a cooled cookie and top with the the bottom of another cookie.
Julie’s Tips
- Sift and Spoon Flour to Measure
- Use a Precision Rolling Pin to Maintain 1/4″ Thickness
- Use a Gold or Light Colored Cookie Sheet
- Bake on the Middle Rack
- Transfer to a Cooling Rack After 1 Minute
To Store
- At Room Temperature – Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.
- Freeze – Store in an airtight container or freezer bag, unfilled, up to 3 months.
Estimated nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is not guaranteed.
Morning, I noticed you had listed 3 T of espresso powder and then right below it 1T of expresso powder. Do you use all of it in the cookies recipe or is the 1 T meant to set aside. Thanks so much
Can’t wait to make these for my holiday cookie boxes. They look fabulous! For the cream filling, I do not see in the directions how to use the two tablespoons of hot tap water?
Thank you.
Hi Mary,
My apologies that I am just now catching up with some comments. The hot water goes in the cream filling that you sandwich between the cookies!
Hope you have a beautiful weekend,
Julie
Can you top the cutouts with royal icing?
Of course!
love these cookies, so adult and beautifully photographed, and the espresso powder is a nice-ly different ingredient, thank you
In the ingredients, the recipe lists 3 tbsp espresso powder followed by 1 tsp espresso powder. Should be one or the other? Love the gift ideas!
Both I just don’t have a great way to list it in my recipe card. Sorry for the confusion.
Cookies came out tasting good! However, I would not recommend using shapes beyond a circle as the dough tends to spread a lot as they are baking. Not overly sweet which I appreciated, as I did use royal icing to top (which I find overly sweet).