butter cookies recipe with step by step photos – crisp and tasty butter cookies made from whole wheat flour and without eggs.
i made these butter cookies for the festive season this year along with the fruit cake. i have made these cookies before too and they taste very good and goes well with a tea or coffee.
we are fond of cookies. thats true. whenever we go to any big store or a shopping mall, we always look out for the cookie shops or the cookie section. usually, i end up buying healthy cookies made with whole wheat or multi grain flour or millet flours. surprisingly and on the contrary, there are very few cookie recipes posted on the blog. since i often bake cookies without taking pics. in fact, i have one big book dedicated to only making cookies.
these cookies have the buttery taste & flavor and are also crisp. they make for a nice festive gift. these also go very well with a cup of milk or tea/coffee. usually in the morning, when i don’t have time to make an elaborate breakfast, i serve cookies with milk or tea.
for the sugar in cookies, i always powder organic unrefined cane sugar or raw sugar. unrefined cane sugar is much better than bleached white sugar. these butter cookies just have the right amount of sweetness. they are not sweet like sugar cookies. i do try to bake cookies and biscuits with whole wheat flour. but at times depending on the recipe, i do add all purpose flour.
serve these butter cookies plain or with milk or hot chocolate or tea/coffee. they also go well as a side sweet snack in tiffins.
if you are looking for similar recipes then do check:
butter cookies
INGREDIENTS FOR butter cookies
- 2 cups whole wheat flour (atta) or 240 grams atta
- 4 to 5 green cardamoms (choti elaichi) - seeds kept and husks removed
- 100 grams chilled cold unsalted butter - about 7 to 8 tablespoon butter
- ½ teaspoon baking powder or ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg powder (jaiphal powder)
- 2 to 3 tablespoon milk - add more milk if required
- 3 tablespoon curd (dahi or yogurt)
- ½ cup organic unrefined cane sugar Or regular sugar Or ¾ cup powdered sugar Or 125 grams of powdered sugar
HOW TO MAKE butter cookies
making butter cookies dough
- in a blender or grinder, add 1/2 cup sugar and seeds of 4 to 5 green cardamoms.
- grind to a fine powder. keep aside. you can also use 3/4 cup powdered sugar instead of grinding the sugar.
- in a mixing bowl, take 2 cups whole wheat flour (240 grams) and ½ tsp baking soda or ½ tsp baking powder.
- with a spoon or spatula mix everything well.
- add 100 grams chilled butter. with your fingertips break the butter and mix with the flour. you can cut the butter with two knives too. this can also be achieved with a food processor or a stand mixer. if the butter melts while mixing with your hands, keep the mixture in the fridge for some minutes and then start again..
- mix till you get a bread crumb like texture in the mixture.
- add powdered sugar and 1/4 tsp nutmeg powder. mix well with a spoon or spatula.
- add 3 tbsp yogurt. lightly mix and then add 2 to 3 tbsp milk.
- mix and gather the entire mixture together to a dough. don't knead.
- keep the cookie dough covered in a bowl, in the fridge for 30 minutes.
making butter cookies
- before baking and cutting the cookies, pre heat the oven at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees fahrenheit.
- remove the dough and spread some flour on the work surface as well as on the dough.
- with a rolling pin (belan), roll the dough. this rolling takes quite an effort. roll the dough to a thickness of 0.50 to 0.75 cms.
- with cookie cutters, cut the dough. gather the remaining dough and again roll. cut with the cookie cutters and repeat the process.
baking butter cookies
- then place the butter cookies in a baking tray with an inch gap between them.
- bake butter cookies in a preheated oven at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees fahrenheit for 15 to 25 minutes or more till the cookies are light golden or golden.
- once baked, remove when still hot and place them on a wired tray or rack. so that the butter cookies cool down.
- once they cool down at room temperature, place the butter cookies immediately in an air tight jar or box.
- serve butter cookies plain or with milk or tea.
RECIPE TIPS
- the recipe can be halved, doubled or tripled.
how to make butter cookies recipe
making butter cookies dough
1. in a blender or grinder, add ½ cup sugar and seeds of 4 to 5 green cardamoms.
2. grind to a fine powder. keep aside. you can also use ¾ cup powdered sugar instead of grinding the sugar.
3. in a mixing bowl, take 2 cups whole wheat flour (240 grams) and ½ tsp baking soda or baking powder. you can add either baking soda or baking powder in this recipe. baking soda gives a softer texture whereas baking powder gives a crisp texture.
4.with a spoon or spatula mix everything well.
5. add 100 grams (about 7 to 8 tbsp) chilled butter. cut the butter into cubes or sticks and then add.
6. with your fingertips break the butter and mix with the flour. you can cut the butter in the flour with two knives too. this can also be achieved with a food processor or a stand mixer. if the butter melts while mixing with your hands, keep the mixture in the fridge for some minutes and then start again.
7. mix till you get a bread crumb like texture in the mixture.
8. add powdered sugar and ¼ tsp nutmeg powder.
9. mix well with a spoon or spatula.
10. add 3 tbsp yogurt.
11. lightly mix and then add 2 to 3 tbsp milk.
12. mix and gather the entire mixture together to a dough. don’t knead.
2 methods to make butter cookies
a) easy and quick method
1. now make a log or roll of the dough. cover with a cling film or place the rolled dough log covered in a bowl. refrigerate the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
2. after 30 minutes, remove and then slice the dough in 0.75 cm to 1.25 cm cookies. preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius before you bake these cookies.
3. place the butter cookies in a baking tray with an inch gap between them. you can also press some dry fruits in the center.
4. bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees fahrenheit for 15 to 25 minutes or more till the butter cookies are light golden or golden. temperatures vary from oven to oven, so do keep a check whilst the cookies are baking. for slight moist and crumbly taste, don’t brown the cookies. for a crisp texture, brown the cookies lightly. depending on the size of the butter cookies, it may take more or less time for the cookies to bake. keep the cookie tray in the center rack if using an OTG. don’t keep it on the tray touching the bottom heating rods. or else the butter cookies burn from the base.
5. once baked, remove when still hot and place them on a wired tray or rack. so that the cookies cool. down.
2nd method to make butter cookies
1. chill the dough without rolling in a log. remove the cookies dough and spread some flour on the work surface as well as on the dough.
2. with a rolling pin, roll the dough. this rolling takes quite an effort. roll the dough to a thickness of 0.50 to 0.75 cms.
3. with cookie cutters, cut the dough. gather the remaing dough and again roll. cut with the cookie cutters and repeat the process.
baking butter cookies
4. then place the butter cookies in a baking tray with an inch gap between them. bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees fahrenheit for 15 to 25 minutes or more till the butter cookies are light golden or golden. these cookies can also be baked in the convection mode of microwave oven with the same temperature. you can also bake the butter cookies in batches, if you have a small oven. just place the cookies in the fridge before you bake them in batches.
5. the baked butter cookies once out of the oven.
6. once baked, immediately remove them when still hot and place them on a wired tray or rack. so that the cookies cool down.
7. once they cool down at room temperature, place them immediately in an air tight jar or box. serve butter cookies plain or with milk or tea.
Hi Dassana, I am a great fan of your recipes. I like experimenting with new cuisines. I happened to reach your blog by chance few years ago. Since then, I turn to your blog whenever I am trying new recipes; even if it’s from other books, I want to see if you had done it and compare the recipes. Because I just can’t resist relying on your recipes. 😂
After we started giving solid food to my daughter, I tried this butter cookie recipe. My daughter, my husband, my in-laws – everyone loved it; of course me too. I liked it better because of all the compliments from the family.
Though I never thought of sharing my comments (as I know that I can’t make it short 😂), I thought of writing it today. Because I am going to make it with my daughter today. She’s very happy and excited. Seeing her like that, it made me write this long comment.
Keep those wonderful recipes coming. Our best to you.
Love
Karthika Mukundh
hi karthika, i felt so good reading your comment and pleased too know that the butter cookies were loved by everyone in your family. of course, you can write long comments. even i have many cookbooks. i hardly ever use them. on the occasions i do, i see glaring errors or mistakes in the recipes eg too much of sugar in a cake or too much of spices or oil in a gravy or curry recipe.
thanks again and i wish you all the best. happy cooking.
Hello Dassana,
I have been baking these cookies for the past 3 years and they turn out awesome every time. I love your recipes as they are always healthy. My son is fond of spicy snacks. His exams are round the corner and I don’t want to give him fried stuff. Can I make this cookie spicy? Please let me know what I should add and the proportion.
Once again my heartfelt wishes to you for the good work that you are doing.
Thanks
thanks nalini. yes you can make then spicy or spicy-sweet, whatever your son likes. no need to change the proportions of any ingredient. since sugar is not there, you may need to add some more milk while binding.
Thank you o much
You made my work easy through this receip
Hi !! Hour recipie sounds awsm but can we use brown sugar instead and if yes , then do we need to powder the same also .
yes you can use brown sugar. no need to powder brown sugar.
Hello Ma’am,
I love your recipes and and preparing delicious foods for my family. Thank you!
Do you have any vegan recipe for cookies? Or, can I use almond butter instead of dairy butter? Kindly help☺️
thanks rammi. yes i have two vegan cookie recipes – orange cookies and coconut cookies.
orange cookies – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-orange-crinkle-cookies-recipe/
coconut cookies – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-coconut-cookies-recipe/
i have never used almond butter while making cookies. so i do not know how the texture and taste of the cookies will be.
Hi Dasaana.. my family loves the cookies. They are a hit. The shapes are so cute. I replaced butter with cold coconut oil. I also added vanilla. Thanks ao much. Hare Krishna
thanks rupini for sharing the feedback. yes coconut oil is a good substitute. even i use coconut oil on occasions in cookies. hare krishna.
Amit..very nice recipes..but need clarity on the baking soda or baking powder. But you also are adding yogurt as an ingredient. What us better…B soda or B powder please?
baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate. baking powder is a mixture of sodium bicarbonate when moistened releases carbon dioxide which helps in rising of baked stuff. baking powder contains sodium bicarbonate, an acidifying agent (cream of tartar), and also a drying agent (usually starch). same function as baking soda. however baking soda is three times more stronger than baking powder. yogurt is added as it is an acidic agent and when it reacts with an alkaline substance like baking soda or baking powder, it releases carbon dioxide. depending on the recipe and other ingredients used, you can decide what to add.
Can i add choco chip in these cookies? Will it taste good?
Aishwarya, yes you can add. the cookies will taste good with choco chips.
Can I use All Purpose flour instead of whole wheat flour in your butter cookie recipe and keep all other ingredients the same.
Michelle, yes you can. but add less milk because whole wheat flour absorbs more liquids.
I am a huge fan of your recipes. I have tried a lot and they all come out so awesome. Trust me, I have tried many recipes but yours are the only one who are full proof and never fails.
I recently started baking and tried your nankhatai, banana cake and both were too good.
The best part is your choice of healthy ingredients. I don’t buy maida and you never post any baking recipe with it. Thanks for that. You are amazing!
Just one request, could you add more cookies recipe. I am finding them tough. I would love to see ragi cookies, semolina cookies etc.
Also some savory baking recipes would be great.
I am sorry if that is too much to ask for.
Bless you!
thank you garima for these words. i have some recipes with maida, but as far as possible i do avoid baking with it. i do want to add more cookie recipes. in fact i had developed a batch of oats cookies recipe recently and they were awesome. did not take pics, but yes i will add the recipe in some time. and yes ragi cookies have been asked by many readers. just that i have not tried making cookies with it. so i will need to develop a good fool proof recipe with ragi. even rava cookies have been requested. so will try to add them.
you are not asking too much and please don’t be sorry. i can understand as good eggless baked recipes are sometimes difficult to get in media like internet or books. i have myself tried eggless baking recipes from books and at times the recipes have failed miserably. also i am working on a butter cake recipe with whole wheat flour. both times the texture of cake did not come out as expected. so eventually after trying and testing, i will add these eggless cake and cookie recipes.
Hi Amit
Thanks for writing nice and easy receipies.
I have three question regarding this receipe
I do not have nutmug powder.Can we skip it?
Can I bakr cookies in cake tray as I could not find cookies baking tray?
Also till what time i should preheat oven at 180 drgree??
Thanks
thanks charul.
– you can skip nutmeg powder.
– you can bake cookies in a cake tray.
– preheat for 15 minutes at 180 degrees celsius.
Hi my cooking Guru made these biscuits today with my 3 year old OMG it was awesome I have no words and good thing Is she can have without any regrets thats loads of sugar is going in her body……
For me you are my sakshat Ma Anapurna……I just cannot think to cook without you.
thank you so much…..I am so confident with coo8now that my fear is completely gone Al long as you and your recipes are there…
I love you ! I really like to meet you one day to say thank you for this wonderful job
lots of hugs
Urvashi shah
welcome urvashi. i am humbled reading your kind and positive words. glad that i am able to help you in cooking. stay blessed.
Dear dassana…can v use greased iron tawa inside oven…..pl suggest me
Shubha, you can use iron skillet like ‘Lodge Pans’ which can withstand the high oven temperature. ask the salesmen before buying.
OK dassana… Thank u
welcome shubha
Hi.
If I am baking cookies in batches,then is it necessary to preheat oven each time?
if you are keeping the cookies immediately in the oven after removing the first batch, then no need to preheat. but if you give an interval of some time eg 15 or 30 minutes, then you will have to preheat the oven again.
Awesome biscuits/cookies! I am unable to attach pics 🙁 thank you so much!
Welcome Ranjuni
can we make this cookies in cooker
Vaidehi, it should work. but i never tried.
I made cookies but they were burnt from bottom and very soft from top. Which mode to use for baking this? Both top and bottom heat mode or only bottom heat mode? I am using 18litre other
sai, you can use both top and bottom heating modes. also keep the tray in the center rack of the oven. if you keep it close to the bottom heating rod, the cookies will get burnt.
20 minutes back I had a plate full of butter cookies. Not one in sight now. 😊
Thanks Shefali for this sweet comment
Should the curd be sour? Can I use salted butter?
curd is fresh and not sour. you can use salted butter.
Hi,
I want to use OTG to bake these cookies, can you help me with the mode, temperature for preheat & bake and Time to bake these cookies.
Also it would be great if you can help in selecting the tray to be used for baking and the shelf of OTG (upper, middle, lower) to be used.
i have also used an OTG to bake these cookies. preheat for 15 minutes. use the same preheat and bake temp (180 degrees celsius) as mentioned in the recipe. timing for baking will vary with the size, watts and make of the oven. so it can take 12 to 15 minutes or even 25 to 30 minutes. so do keep a check.
i always use an aluminium baking tray and keep the tray in the middle rack for even baking, with both the top and bottom heating elements on.
Can i use maida flour instead of Wheat /Atta flour?
Krishnapriya, yes you can use.
Hi dassana
Your recipes are awesome.
I have tried many recipes and all these were really good. I really appreciate your hard work.
I have one question about these cookies.
Why should we add baking powder and curd in the cookies dough?
There are some recipes of whole wheat cookies on the internet in which no baking powder or curd is added.
Will it make any difference if we do not add baking powder in it?
Thanks Shilpa for your kind words. Each recipe is different. It all depends upon the combination of ingredients and their proportion. Addition of curd and baking powder makes the cookies soft.
Hi, i am a big fan of ur cooking. U r always choose the healthy way and my family likes healthy dishes..
This cookies are awesome…☺
Thank you
Welcome Knj. Thanks for sharing positive feedback on cookies and for your kind words. I try to make the recipe more healthier, wherever possible.
Hi Dasanna
I tried this cookie recipe. The cookies were crispy but the it wasn’t melting in mouth. Also, sugar was less. I followed as per the instructions. I see in your instruction that 1 cup = 250 ml. And 2 cups / 240 gm of atta. If it’s 2 cups, then shouldn’t it be 500 grams? Pls correct me if I am wrong.
Thank you!
ramya, did you use cup measure or weight measure. 2 cups of atta is 240 grams. the 1 cup measure weighs liquids as 250 ml. grams is different than ml. when 1 cup of atta is measured in a weighing scale, it weighs around 120 to 125 grams depending on its flour texture. different ingredients weigh differently. eg 1 cup rice weighs 200 to 215 grams depending on the quality of rice. hope this helps.
Thank you so much. I used measuring cups. Will try the recipe again. And thank you so much for the response. Appreciate your effort of responding each of my message. 🙂
welcome ramya ?
I have tried this cookies, taste wise they are good but their texture was not crisp… I followed all the instructions carefully, used same measurements.. Don’t know what went wrong… I backed them in Gas oven… Guess this could be reason for soft texture…
could be baking in gas oven has resulted in soft texture. otherwise these cookies have a crisp texture.
Hi dassana,
I have always found your recipes to be as good as it is described.I’m new to baking and have tried this cookies.I baked under180c as told by u in convection mode.but the cookies turned to b very hard as it cooled down.how to overcome this.should i take it out before golden brown.
arya, oven temperature varies from oven to oven. so could be that the cookies were baked too much. usually in convection ovens baking is fast. to test if the cookies are done, they should be golden from the base and you can press a spoon or fork on them. if there is an impression of the fork or spoon on the cookie, than they need to be baked. hope this helps.