This easy no bake Shortbread Crust Recipe is perfect for cheesecake, pies, bars and tarts. This homemade pie crust takes just 5 minutes to make and 4 ingredients. This shortbread crust is freezer friendly and easy to make ahead of time.
Making pie crust is so simple – and incredibly rewarding. The options are endless from this amazing Shortbread Crust, Sugar Cookie Crust, Pretzel Pie Crust, Speculoos Crust, Quiche Crust and of course classics like Oreo or graham cracker crust.
As it starts to warm up, I tend to use my oven a little less. It’s a mix of wanting to spend more time outdoors and a smaller effort in the kitchen, and the love for all things chilled this time of year.
That’s one of the many reasons I love this no bake Shortbread Crust! It’s simple, buttery, sweet but yet not too sweet, making it a delicious base for cheesecakes, pies, bars, tarts and more.
This Shortbread Crust Recipe creates a thick crust with great texture and can hold filling without becoming soggy.
You just need 4 ingredients to make these easy no bake pie crusts.
Table of Contents
Shortbread Crust Ingredients
- Shortbread Cookies – Use homemade or your favorite brand.
- Butter – I prefer using salted butter for this recipe, but you can also use unsalted.
- Sugar – A blend of brown sugar and white sugar sweetens this crust to perfection.
How to Make Shortbread Pie Crust
It’s quick and easy to make and like so many of my recipes, only uses a few ingredients. Just dump them all into a food processor and let it do all the “work.” It takes just 3 minutes!
- In a food processor, crush shortbread cookies until smooth.
- Add butter and sugars and combine in processor.
- Press into a greased pie crust.
- Refrigerate 10+ minutes and fill.
Shortbread Crust isn’t Just for Pies
So, what should you put in a shortbread crust? The list is endless, but here are a few of my Shortbread Crust Recipe favorites: Pecan Pie Bars, Lemon Pie, Rhubarb Bars, Fruit Pizza, Banana Cream Pie, Lemon Berry Pie, Lemon Tart and whatever your little heart desires {um, all of the above, please?}
A Shortbread Crust is often a welcomed, but unexpected surprise when slicing into a pie where most anticipate the usual graham cracker crust.
If you’re a fan of sweet and salty, you’ll love my Pretzel Crust recipe! It’s a favorite with Chocolate or Peanut Butter Cheesecake.
Can You Freeze A Shortbread Crust?
This pie crust only takes about 5 minutes to make, but you can make them ahead of time and freeze them so that you have pie crusts ready to go!
Freeze the pie crust in a dish by wrapping in plastic wrap or foil then placing in a freezer bag.
Can You Make This Pie Crust Without A Food Processor?
Don’t fret – if you don’t have a food processor, you can make this pie crust by hand. Place the cookies in a bag and use a mallet or rolling pin to break them up, then combine ingredients and press into greased pie dish and refrigerate.
Tips
- Grease the pie dish before adding the crust for easy removal.
- Chill the pie crust for 10 minutes before adding the filling.
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More Easy Dessert Recipes
Shortbread Crust Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 ounces shortbread cookies
- 6 tablespoons {salted} butter melted
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar packed
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- In a food processor {or bag with a mallet}, crush shortbread cookies until smooth.
- Add butter and sugars and combine in processor {or in a bowl with a spoon}.
- Press into a greased pie dish.
- Refrigerate 10+ minutes and fill.
Notes
Substitutions
- Butter – Salted is preferred, but you can use unsalted butter.
- Sugar – Use all white or all brown sugar if a substitute it needed.
- Cookies – You can substitute sugar cookies or speculoos cookies.
To Store
- At Room Temperature – Up to 5 days covered.
- Refrigerated – Up to 1 week covered.
I want to use this as the crust for my baked cheesecake, will it work for that?
Yep!
I want to add a filling that needs about 14 minutes in the oven. Will this crust beOK after baking.
Great question – yes!
just want to make sure…..you don’t bake this at all right?
No, just refrigerate 10 minutes! Enjoy!
the crust was amazing! its didnt get in the least bit soggy and the flavors went great with my lemon cheescake.
Thank you for sharing! So glad you enjoyed it!
You’re right, I wanted to eat this by the spoonful. I filled it with lemon curd to make a last minute dessert and everyone raved about it!
Hi Julie, do you think this would work for an ice cream pie base? Wondering how it would freeze.
Yessssss! It would be amazing. It works just like a graham cracker crust (but better)!