Peanut Butter Shortbread

Traditional Scottish shortbread collides with American peanut butter cookie energy in these pan-baked rounds. The dough is denser than classic shortbread thanks to peanut butter and brown sugar, but the technique remains pure shortbread: pressed into a round pan, baked until barely browned, and cut into wedges while warm.

Golden Crisco shortening (or any vegetable shortening) keeps the texture proper-shortbread-tender. Butter would spread more and give a softer, chewier cookie. Stick with shortening here. The peanut butter does the flavor heavy work anyway.

The double peanut butter hit makes these unmistakable. PB in the dough plus a smooth peanut butter icing on top means every bite has nutty intensity. White chocolate drizzled in stripes over the icing adds visual contrast and a sweet creamy counterpoint to the rich peanut flavor.

The DO NOT OVERBAKE warning in the recipe is real. Shortbread should be pale, just barely browning at the edges. Overbaking turns them dry, sandy, and bitter. Pull them when the centers look set and the edges have just barely colored.

Pro Tips

• Use creamy peanut butter, not chunky. Chunks throw off the shortbread texture.
• Press dough firmly and evenly into the pan, scoring into wedges before baking for clean breaks later.
• Bake one pan at a time on the middle rack for the most even color.
• Microwave the white chocolate in 30-second bursts and knead the bag between intervals to avoid scorching.

Variations

• Swap white chocolate for dark or milk chocolate drizzle.
• Press a few chopped peanuts into the icing while wet for added crunch.
• Cut into bars instead of wedges if using a square pan.