Use a wide star tip and softly spreadable butter so piping does not require extra liquid.
Airy piped shortbread pairs enclose vanilla buttercream and raspberry jam for a delicate Christmas sandwich.
The recipe card lists measured ingredients, numbered steps, storage guidance, and a nutrition estimate when available. Total time includes the listed preparation, rest, baking, and cooling periods for this recipe.
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Viennese Christmas Shortbread Sandwiches 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
- sturdy piping bag
- 1/2-inch open-star tip
- sieve
- 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: Beat 170 g butter and dough sugar for 3 minutes until fluffy. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla, then sifted flour, cornstarch and salt just until combined.
Shape and manage temperature
- Shape and manage temperature: Fit a sturdy piping bag with a 1/2-inch open-star tip. Pipe 24 single-layer 1 3/4-inch rosettes, about 15 g dough each; chill the piped trays 20 minutes.
Bake the whole batch
- Bake the whole batch: Heat oven to 350°F (175°C) conventional or 325°F (165°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 15–19 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 19 minutes = 38 minutes.
Cool and finish
- Cool and finish: Rest 10 minutes on each tray, then cool 20 minutes on a rack. Beat filling butter, filling sugar and the remaining vanilla until fluffy. Divide buttercream among twelve bases, about 9 g each; add 5 g jam to each and top gently with remaining rosettes. Yield is 12 sandwiches; no additional setting wait is required.
Timing and scaling
- Timing and scaling: Active preparation is 40 minutes; required chill/rest is 20 minutes; whole-batch oven baking is 38 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
Whipping traps air in the butter; cornstarch keeps the piped halves especially delicate.
Technique & texture
Use a wide star tip and softly spreadable butter so piping does not require extra liquid.
Finishing & serving
Put jam in the middle of the buttercream, rather than spreading to the rims, to limit leakage.
Storage and make-ahead
| Method | How long | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Room temperature | 2 hours | Up to 2 hours for serving. Serve buttercream-and-jam sandwiches in small batches; return to the refrigerator promptly. Reduce to 1 hour if the room is above 90°F (32°C). |
| Refrigeration | 4 days | Up to 4 days. Keep buttercream-and-jam sandwiches airtight at 40°F (4°C) or below. Plain shortbread needs no refrigeration; the assembled filling is why this recipe specifies chilled storage. Separate layers with parchment. |
| Raw freezing | 1 month | Up to 1 month, dough only. Freeze only the shortbread dough, well wrapped; thaw covered overnight in the refrigerator, then shape and complete the recipe's full bake. Make fillings fresh; do not freeze raw egg custard or raw frangipane in assembled bars. |
| Baked freezing | 2 months | Up to 2 months unfilled; 1 month filled. Freeze fully cooled buttercream-and-jam sandwiches airtight between parchment layers. For sandwiches, freezing unfilled baked halves and adding fresh filling gives a crisper crumb. Thaw filled items covered overnight in the refrigerator. |
| Restoring | 2 hours | Overnight refrigerated thaw; 10–20 minutes before serving. Thaw filled items covered in the refrigerator. Let a serving portion stand 10–20 minutes to soften, keeping the total room-temperature exposure within 2 hours. Do not oven-reheat filled items; add fresh powdered sugar or cocoa after thawing where used. |
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 12 equal portions. Includes required fillings and finishes. Brands, unused coatings and actual portion size affect the estimate.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many sandwiches do 24 rosettes make?
Exactly twelve; each sandwich uses two baked rosettes.
Why no milk in the buttercream?
Soft butter and 60 g powdered sugar make a thick filling without adding free liquid.
Can I mail these in an unrefrigerated gift box?
They are fragile and this recipe specifies chilled storage for the filled sandwiches; choose an unfilled shortbread for mailing.
Browse more cookie ideas in the Christmas Shortbread Cookies collection.
