This easy no bake Shortbread Crust Recipe is perfect for cheesecake, pies, bars and tarts. This homemade pie crust takes just five minutes and four ingredients.
It really is that simple! Plus, it’s also freezer friendly, which makes it so easy to make ahead of time.
Originally published 10/22/19, updated with fresh content 9/9/22.
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.
Why You’ll Love this Shortbread Crust Recipe
- Minimal Ingredients
- No Baking Required
- Great for a Variety of Desserts
- Perfect for Entertaining
Making pie crust is so simple – and incredibly rewarding. The options are endless… try this amazing Shortbread Crust, Sugar Cookie Crust, Pretzel Pie Crust, Speculoos Crust, Quiche Crust and of course classics like Oreo crust or graham cracker crust.
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.
- Brown Sugar – A blend of brown sugar and white sugar sweetens this crust to perfection.
- White Granulated Sugar – The perfect amount of sweetness!
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 three minutes!
- First, in a food processor, crush shortbread cookies until smooth.
- Next, add butter and sugars and combine in processor.
- Press into a greased pie crust.
- Refrigerate 10+ minutes and fill.
Tips
- Grease the pie dish before adding the crust for easy removal. This is my favorite baking spray.
- Chill the pie crust for 10 minutes before adding the filling.
- Avoid gaps. Fill in with more crust as needed.
- If you have more than one of the same pie plate, you can gently press one on top of the other for a picture perfect compact crust without effort!
- While this is a no bake crust, it can be baked in the oven just like a graham cracker crust. That means you can use it for cheesecakes and more!
Halving, doubling or tripling a recipe? Use this free printable Measurement Conversion Chart.
Serving Suggestions
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
- Cookie Dough Pie
- 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
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.
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.
Dietary Considerations
- Vegetarian
- Nut Free
- Gluten – to make this shortbread crust gluten free, choose a gluten free cookie.
- Dairy – to make this crust dairy free, sub with a vegan butter.
How to Store
- At Room Temperature – Covered in plastic wrap or in a Ziplock bag up to three days.
- Refrigerated – Covered in plastic wrap or in a Ziplock up to one week.
- Freeze – Freeze the pie crust in a dish by wrapping in plastic wrap or foil then placing in a freezer bag.
More Dessert Inspiration
Shortbread Crust Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 ounces shortbread cookies
- 6 tablespoons butter melted, salted butter is preferrred
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar packed
- 2 tablespoons white granulated 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.
Julie’s Tips
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.
Estimated nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is not guaranteed.
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)!