Keep rounds about 1/8 inch thick so they dry through during the short bake.
A rye-heavy dough bound with milk bakes thin and crisp rather than into buttery slice-and-bake coins.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Malted Rye Christmas Shortbread Crisps Recipe
Follow the tray sizes, portions and baking intervals in the instructions below.
Total time includes hands-on preparation, required chilling or resting, whole-batch cooking, cooling and finishing.
Kitchen tools you’ll need
- mixing bowl
- mixer
- kitchen scale
- two 13 x 18-inch half sheets
- parchment
- wide spatula
- cooling rack
Ingredients
US measures are approximate. Gram weights help keep portions consistent; spice weights vary with density.
Instructions
Mix the dough
- Mix the dough: Whisk rye flour, malted milk powder, sugar, baking powder and salt. Rub in butter until crumbly, then stir in milk and press into a cohesive dough.
Shape and manage temperature
- Shape and manage temperature: Divide into 24 equal portions, about 15 g. Roll each between small parchment squares into a 2 1/2-inch round about 1/8 inch thick; peel off the upper paper.
Bake the whole batch
- Bake the whole batch: Heat oven to 375°F (190°C) conventional or 350°F (175°C) fan. Arrange cookies on two parchment-lined 13 x 18-inch half sheets, 12 cookies per tray, with at least 1 inch between edges. Bake one tray at a time on the middle rack, keeping the waiting tray refrigerated for 10–13 minutes, rotating front to back once, until the edges and bases are lightly golden and the centers look dry. Whole-batch cookie baking is 2 trays x up to 13 minutes = 26 minutes.
Cool and finish
- Cool and finish: Rest 10 minutes on each tray, then cool 20 minutes on a rack before serving or packing. Cooling includes the tray rest.
Timing and scaling
- Timing and scaling: Active preparation is 20 minutes; required chill/rest is 0 minutes; whole-batch oven baking is 26 minutes; cooling/setting is 30 minutes. Cooling allowance runs from the final tray; earlier trays may cool during later baking and that overlap is not counted again. Start with butter at the stated consistency; ingredient warm-up and frozen-dough thawing are extra. Oven preheating can overlap shaping or chilling. Scale every ingredient weight but keep piece dimensions, oven temperature and per-tray bake range unchanged; extra trays increase whole-batch time.
Chef’s Science & Pro Tips
Ingredient science
Milk supplies the moisture a rye-heavy crumb needs; malted milk powder is not a dry replacement for it.
Technique & texture
Keep rounds about 1/8 inch thick so they dry through during the short bake.
Finishing & serving
Malted milk contains barley and dairy; these crisps are neither gluten-free nor vegan.
Storage and make-ahead
| Method | How long | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Room temperature | 5 days | Up to 5 days. Store completely cooled cookies airtight in a cool, dry room, with parchment between layers. Keep away from moist filled cookies. |
| Refrigeration | up to 7 days | Unnecessary; up to 7 days if needed. Baked refrigeration is unnecessary for these unfilled cookies and may soften the crumb. If the room is warm, seal airtight and bring to room temperature while still covered. |
| Raw freezing | 1 month | Up to 1 month. Freeze wrapped dough or unbaked portions airtight. Thaw covered overnight in the refrigerator; shape as directed, then complete any stated post-shaping chill. Do not add thaw time to the fresh-batch timings. |
| Baked freezing | 2 months | Up to 2 months. Freeze fully cooled cookies airtight with parchment between layers. Thaw in their sealed container at room temperature for about 1–2 hours. |
| Restoring | As described | Serve after thawing; optional 3–5-minute refresh. For plain unfilled cookies only, refresh at 300°F (150°C) conventional or 275°F (135°C) fan for 3–5 minutes, then cool 20 minutes before sealing. This is extra time beyond the fresh recipe. |
Notes
- Scale ingredients, including US measures, without changing cookie size or oven temperature. Extra trays increase whole-batch time.
Nutrition
Approximate values per portion from the listed ingredient weights divided into 24 equal portions. Includes required fillings and finishes. Brands, unused coatings and actual portion size affect the estimate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is milk needed here?
The rye-heavy flour mix needs 45 g milk to bind and roll into thin crisps.
Are these the same as brown-butter pecan coins?
No; they use rubbed cool butter, rye, malted milk and baking powder, then bake as thin crisps.
Can I use dark rye flour?
The formula is specified for medium rye; darker whole rye absorbs more and is not an established equal swap.
