Looking for bite sized cookies? Then I have you covered with my easiest ever, 3 ingredient mini butter cookies. Light, deliciously buttery and crisp, these make perfect cookie jar fillers, tea time treats or great to share as gifts.
These 1 inch (2cm) little delights, bursting with amazing flavor are made with just 3 basic ingredients.
Melted butter, powdered sugar and flour are all you need to whip up a batch of these cookies.
Super easy, to make, where all the ingredients are mixed in one bowl. Then simply scoop, roll and bake.
You don't even need to get the butter to room temperature before baking, as this recipe requires melted butter. Great for a quick bake or whenever the cookie craving strikes 🙂
Key ingredients
- Flour
- Butter
- Powdered / Confectioners sugar (out of powdered sugar, here's how you can make your own)
Instructions
The printable recipe card with ingredient amounts and instructions are at the end of this post. This section includes images, to guide you through the process of this recipe.
Add powdered sugar to a medium sized bowl and pour in the melted butter.
Whisk to combine, then add flour.
Fold in the flour with a spatula to form a soft dough.
Scoop dough out a slightly heaping ½ teaspoon at a time and drop onto your baking tray lined with parchment paper. Shape each into a ball
Use a fork to lightly flatten each rolled out dough. Each cookie should be at least 1 inch (2cm) round.
These cookies have minimal spread when baking. If you are worried though about the cookies spreading while baking, simply pop the baking sheet with the shaped cookie dough into the fridge for about 15 minutes before baking.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until the cookies are lightly browned. The cookies will still be soft when you take it out of the oven, but will crisp as it cools.
Storage
Leave the cookies to cool completely before storing in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Tips and frequently asked questions
- What type of flour to use?
For these cookies, you can use either all purpose or plain or cake flour.
- Why must I bake these cookies with powdered sugar?
Powdered sugar is recommended in this recipe because of the amazing outcome it produces.
Powdered sugar dissolves perfectly with the melted butter and when baked creates a crisp but light melt in your mouth texture.
- How can I make my own powdered sugar?
If you do not have powdered sugar, you can make your own for this recipe: Simply add your regular granulated white sugar or castor sugar to a blender or coffee grinder.
Blend for 1 minute or until smooth and powdery. If it is still gritty blend again for another minute until you get the powdered sugar consistency.
How quickly your sugar turns into powdered sugar will depend on the strength of your blender.
Only make enough for this recipe so that you do not need to add in cornstarch.
Stored powdered sugar needs cornstarch to keep it from drying and forming clumps.
Variations
These cookies are so delicious as is, but also versatile enough to add flavoring and decoration to your preference. Here are a few great suggestions if you would like to give it a try.
- Add a teaspoon of vanilla or lemon extract to the powdered sugar and melted butter mixture before adding in the flour.
- Sprinkle with either cinnamon powder, colorful sprinkles or granulated sugar before baking.
- Drizzle the baked cooled cookies with melted white or dark chocolate.
More delicious Butter cookie recipes
- 3 ingredient Butter Cookies
- Danish Butter cookies
- Italian butter cookies
- Strawberry butter cookies
- Melting Moments Butter Cookies
Enjoy ♡
3 ingredient mini butter cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all purpose OR cake flour OR plain flour
- ½ cup powdered / confectioners sugar
- ⅔ cup melted butter
Instructions
- Add powdered sugar to a medium sized bowl
- Melt the butter in the microwave or on the stovetop. Leave to cool for 5 minutes before combining with the powdered sugar.
- Whisk to combine, then add flour.
- Fold in the flour with a spatula to form a soft dough.
- Scoop dough out a slightly heaping ½ teaspoon at a time and drop onto your baking tray lined with parchment paper. Shape each into a ball
- Use a fork to lightly flatten each rolled out dough. Each cookie should be at least 1 inch (2cm) round.
- These cookies have minimal spread when baking. If you are worried though about the cookies spreading while baking, simply pop the baking sheet with the shaped cookie dough into the fridge for about 15 minutes before baking.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in a preheated oven of 356° F / 180° C (160° C fan) until the cookies are lightly browned. The cookies will still be soft when you take it out of the oven, but will crisp as it cools.
Storage
- Leave the cookies to cool completely before storing in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Notes
Nutrition
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Paula says
I ran across these on Pinterest and they were too cute not to try! I got a little overexcited with the vanilla extract though (my fault, not the author's) so they spread a bit. However, the taste more than made up for it. I will be making these again with almond extract next and I'm going to try to make them half the size. The smaller the better!
Monique says
I made these added a little almond extract, did not flatten, 1/2 tablespoon size, sprinkled with powdered sugar at the end and CANNOT stop eating them ty for sharing
The Gardening Foodie says
Hi Monique, You're welcome, It's great to know you're enjoying this recipe too. Your version sounds amazing! Love the addition of almond extract.
Plus I can totally relate to the can't stop eating part, they're seriously hard to resist! 😄
Leslie Ives says
Surprised there are no eggs. I have a recipe for butter cookies that use eggs along with the other ingredients. They are also called Ice Cream Cookies because they are good with a bowl of ice cream. One thing I did find strange was the use of a fork to flatten butter cookies. The marks from the fork are usually the indicator of Peanut Butter cookies.
I have printed off the recipe so I can compare them to my recipe.
Cheryl says
It doesn’t get any easier than this! These are so good make sure to double the batch because one is not enough! ❤️
The Gardening Foodie says
Hi Cheryl, Thank you for your wonderful comment😊 It's great to hear that you found this recipe easy and delicious. Doubling the batch sounds like a fantastic plan for even more deliciousness 😋
Happy Baking 😊
Cindy says
Hello 👋
Just wanted to know if the butter should be salted or unsalted. I plan to make them soon, they look divine. Thank you!!
The Gardening Foodie says
Hello Cindy, I used salted butter in the recipe. However, if you're using unsalted butter, you can mix in 1/4 teaspoon of salt with your flour.
Enjoy your baking 😊
Cindy says
Hello!!
I made these cookies yesterday Eve. Loved them. Light and depth of flavour. Yum🙂
Thanks for sharing!
The Gardening Foodie says
Hello Cindy, thank you for your kind words. I'm really happy to hear that you enjoyed these cookies and thought they were delicious 😊
Carrie says
Is it possible to make these with margarine? I have a family member who is lactose intolerant
The Gardening Foodie says
Hi Carrie, yes sure you can use margarine for these cookies, Just ensure that the margarine you choose is labeled as lactose-free or dairy-free to avoid any potential lactose contamination.
Keep in mind that the flavor of the cookies may vary slightly due to the different fat content and water content in margarine compared to butter, but they should still be delicious 😋
Happy Baking 😊