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Crisp, buttery and super delish, this Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread is fabulous for snacking or dessert. It also pairs wonderfully with ice cream or flan and comes together with just one bowl and no mixer!
Being a shortbread afficiando, I was excited when I discovered Polvorones de Canela - aka Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread. I mean, what's not to love with a cross between crisp, buttery shortbread and a delicious Snickerdoodle style cookie?
When I gave Scott a cookie to sample, he took a bite, then closed his eyes and said, "I've been transported to a little Mexican bakery in San Antonio!". I knew that was a compliment, as he's raved about those little San Antonio bakeries ever since he was there on a business trip over 20 years ago!
Is this Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread really "Mexican"?
Well, yes and no. Or maybe the order of the answer should be no and yes. I'll be the first to admit that, although I'm a HUGE fan and we have lots of Mexican-inspired recipes on the blog, I'm not a consumate expert when it comes to Mexican cuisine. But... the Hispanic Food Network says that Polvorones de Canela (translated Cinnamon Shortbread) is a Mexican cookie recipe which "is made with butter, powdered sugar, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and flour". So it seems that my recipe is pretty close to being "authentic".
The Hispanic Food Network also says that "There are as many ways of making this recipe as there are people cooking them." They explain that some people people roll the dough into balls before baking, some people form logs and slice the dough into rounds and some people roll out the dough and use a cutter. That's my technique of choice for making these Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shorbread cookies because I love the beautiful and uniform fluted shape it gives.
A magic rolling pin!
Although I love rolled cutout cookies, I'm miserable at rolling dough to an even thickness. My cookies used to come out thin, thick and some half thick and half thin. Then one day I discoverd an amazing rolling pin and my rolling woes disappeared. Now I look like a pro (even though I cheat). Check out this wonderful little kitchen tool:
This rolling pin is adjustable to whatever thickness of dough your little heart desires. It comes with interchangeable discs, 1/16, ⅙, ¼, and ⅜-inches in diameter. Just flatten a ball of dough slightly, roll over it until it won't get any bigger and VOILA! Perfect cut out cookies. I've had my Joseph Joseph rolling pin for over 4 years and it continues to work perfectly and make me look like an expert. It's one of my best friends in the kitchen!
No spreading in the oven
I love that this Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread dough keeps it shape so well in the oven. The dough doesn't need to be refrigerated before rolling and it rolls out like a dream. It also re-rolls beautifully without getting tough like some cutout shortbread dough.
I like to use a fluted cutter for these cookies but use whatever shape you like. Sometimes I roll them in different sizes so everyone can choose according to what they're in the mood for.
Spread the love!
If you enjoy sharing gifts from the kitchen, you're going to love giving these Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Cookies to new friends, old friends, neighbors, co-workers...
We're sharing a free printable PDF for the labels (pictured above and below) to give lots of South-of-the-Border charm to your gifts.
If you'd like to receive the labels, just let us know in a comment below this post. We will email you the PDF with instructions on how to use them along with a link for the gift boxes and ribbon.
Want to feel like you've taken a sweet trip to Mexico? Make a batch of these delicious Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Cookies... then again, perhaps you'll want to make a double batch, one to keep and one to give away! It will be a win-win!
Café Tips for making these Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Cookies
- These Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread cookies get a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar on the top. Although you can do that right away, I like to let them bake for 10 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and flatten any puffy places with a flat metal spatula. Then I sprinkle the cookies with the sugar and return them to the oven for the remainder of the baking time. This results in nice flat cookies with a pretty sprinkle.
- I like to use cane sugar for the sprinkling mixture. Cane sugar is just a little bit coarser than granulated sugar (which will also work fine).
- Because this recipe doesn't call for a mixer, you want the butter to be nice and soft. You can leave butter sit out at room temperature to soften, but if the air is chilly it won't get soft enough. Here are a few easy tricks for softening butter.
- You can soften the butter in the microwave at a 10% power level. It works like magic. You’ll need to experiment a bit with your microwave though, as they’re all different. Start with 1 minute. Add 20 to 30-second increments until you learn how long your microwave will take to get the butter nice and soft, but not melted.
- Another technique I often use to soften butter is to put it in the microwave for 30 minutes to an hour with the light on. To keep the light on in the microwave I put a folded paper towel in the door. Don't leave it in there too long though. I forgot about it a few days ago and was amazed when I opened the door and found a plate of melted butter!
- Boil a cup of water in the microwave for 3-4 minutes and get things nice and steamy. Leave the water cup in the microwave, add the butter and close the door. The warmth from the steamy water will help to quickly soften the butter within 20-30 minutes.
- Cutting the butter into small pieces helps it soften quicker.
- Put the butter in the oven with the light turned on. This will take 1-2 hours.
- The fastest way to soften butter is to put cold butter in the microwave for 10 seconds. Turn it to the opposite side and microwave for another 10 seconds. It might be ready at this point, but if it’s not completely soft, add one or two more 5-second stints, turning the butter each time. Don't walk away when using this option or you'll have the prettiest melted butter you ever saw.
- If you prefer to use a mixer, go for it! You won't need the butter to be as soft.
- Use any shape of cookie cutter that you like for this recipe. I have this set of fluted cutters. I really like it because it has a nice selection of sizes, all with the same pretty scalloped shape. I also love that all of the cutters nest inside each other so the set is really easy to store.
- These Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread cookies make a delicious and easy dessert served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of this Best Ever Hot Fudge Sauce or this Ridiculously Easy Butterscotch Sauce.
- I generally roll these cookies ¼-inch thick, but if you like a thicker shortbread cookie, be sure to bake them a little longer.
- The recipe calls for a one hour (or longer) chill for the cutout cookies. If I’m in a big hurry, I just pop them into the freezer for 15-20 minutes.
- Many shortbread recipes call for baking the cookies just until golden at the edges. These Mexican Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread cookies are best (nice and crisp) if baked until evenly golden.
Thought for the day:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-24
What we're listening to for inspiration:
If you enjoy any of these recipes, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It’s so helpful to other readers to hear your results, adaptations and ideas for variations.
- 3 tablespoon granulated or cane sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon optional
- 1 cup very soft butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
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Line two sheet pans with parchment paper. Combine the 3 tablespoons of sugar and the ½ teaspoon of cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
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Place the butter in a medium-sized bowl and stir with a spatula or wooden spoon until nice and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Add the powdered sugar and stir again until well combined.
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Add the egg and vanilla extract and stir for another 30-45 seconds until fluffy and well combined.
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Add the cinnamon and salt and stir to combine then add the flour and stir until combined and there is no dry flour. The mixture will seem crumbly at first. Just keep stirring until it starts to come together.
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Sprinkle a work surface with flour. Have some extra flour on the side in a small cup.
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Turn the dough over several times to coat with the flour then divide the dough in two and cover one with a piece of plastic wrap.
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Keep the surface and your rolling pin lightly dusted with flour at all times, roll out the dough to the desired thickness. I like mine about a ¼ thick but you can go thinner or thicker it’s just important to keep the surface underneath the dough lightly floured as you roll.
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Use a cutter of your choice to cut out the cookies, transferring them to the prepared sheet pans as you go.
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Place the sheet pans in the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour and up to 24 hours. If you don’t have a lot of room in your refrigerator, you can put all the cookies on one pan to chill, then divide them up on the two pans before baking.
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When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350˚F.
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Remove the cookies from the refrigerator and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and flatten each cookie with a flat metal spatula (optional) then sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture.
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Return to the oven and bake for another 5-10 minutes until golden brown. Thinner cookies will take less time, thicker cookies will take more.
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Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before enjoying or storing in an airtight storage container.
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If you remove the cookies from the oven and and let them cool but find they aren’t as crisp as you would like you can return them to the oven for an additional few minutes.
See Café Tips above in the post for more detailed instructions and tips to ensure success.
If you prefer to use Metric measurements there is a button in each of our recipes, right above the word “Instructions”. Just click that button to toggle to grams, milliliters, etc. If you ever come across one of our recipes that doesn’t have the Metric conversion (some of the older recipes may not), feel free to leave a comment and I will add it.
Wendy says
The cookies look yummy . . . can you please send the labels?
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Wendy!
Penny says
On the agenda for tomorrow! Would love the labels. Thank you!!
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Penny!
Anne-Louise Hill says
Looking forward to making these for Cinco de Mayo.
I’m sure they won’t disappoint my co-workers.
Your cookies are a family favourite.
Would love labels for these .
Many thanks
Anne-Louise Hill
Canada
Chris Scheuer says
I'm so happy to hear that, Anne-Louise! We will send the labels your way 🙂
Cindy says
First thing in the morning I’m making these. Thanks for the recipe. I would so love the labels. Thanks!
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Cindy! Enjoy!
Audrey Cortez says
I was looking for a recipe that closely duplicated, "Canelitas," some of my Mexican hubby's favorite cookies. I needed to look no further. These are absolutely scrumdidliumptious! They came out perfectly crisp, buttery and pleasantly sweet. I will be sure to add this recipe to my arsenal. Thank you so much for your lovely site! I also adore the Bible passage addition. We can all use more faith, hope and love! Love and Prayers to you both!!! Audrey 🙂
PS ~ Kindly send the PDF for the label ❤️
Chris Scheuer says
Awesome! Thank you for letting us know, Audrey! We will email the labels 🙂
Amy Hix says
I can't wait to try this recipe! Can you please send the labels?
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Amy!
Susan Galyon says
I enjoy your recipes, your thoughts, and your music! The ridiculously easy One Bowl Fresh Strawberry Cake was so good! My family enjoyed the fresh berries and they now want a blueberry version! Your emails brighten my days!
I would appreciate receiving the free gift cards and the box instructions. I bake often and share with family and friends. I live on a farm and raise beef cattle. I also have a large garden and have chickens for the fresh eggs.
Thank you again. You and your sweet husband are a blessing to me.
Chris Scheuer says
Thank you for the kind words, Susan! I'm so glad you are enjoying the recipes. We are happy to send the labels!
Becky Myers says
You are fast becoming my favorite website for recipes. I love to bake and recipes are just perfect. Please send the pdf for the labels. Thanks so much.
Chris Scheuer says
Yay! We will send the labels your way, Becky!
Teresa Blankenship says
I made these cookies the other day, and they were amazing! My husband has already requested another batch. Could you please send me the PDF for the labels?
Teresa Blankenship
Chris Scheuer says
I love that! Sending the labels your way, Teresa!
Bessie Phillips says
These look delicious! I can’t wait to make some. Please send me the labels and gift box instructions. Thank You!
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Bessie!
Mary Clayton says
I cannot wait to try the Mexican shortbread cookies. They look incredible!!! All your recipes look wonderful! I would love to have the
Printout for label. Thanks again.👏👏👏💯
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Mary! We will send the labels your way!
Teresa Bailey says
These look wonderful! I plan to add a small pinch of cayenne to the recipe when I make them. Please send me a pdf of the label. I have your farmhouse buttermilk cake in the oven as I’m writing this. Yum and thanks
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Teresa! We will send the labels your way.
Becki says
What a wonderful offer! Yes, I'd love to receive a .pdf for the labels. Thank you! These cookies look scrumptious!
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Becki!
Terri says
I would love the labels for the Mexican cinnamon cookies
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Terri!
Terry says
Lucky you to be enjoying the Arizona heat!
These cookies look absolutely scrumptious! Being such a soft dough I wonder if it would work in the cookie press I haven't yet tried? Might just have to give it a go!
Thanks for the great recipes, inspirations, & links to the songs.
I would truly appreciate the label pdf.
Have a most blessed day.
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Terry, I haven't tried these in a cookie press so I can't say for sure. I'm so glad you are enjoying the site! We are happy to send the labels your way 🙂
Gale Haun says
I would love to have the label for the Mexican Sugar Cookies. Thank you. Love your recipes.
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Gale!
Sharon Welling says
Loved the Mexican sugar cookie recipe. My house never smelled so good. Please send me the labels for this cookie recipe.
Chris Scheuer says
Yay! Thanks, Sharon! We will send the labels.
Mary Kukla says
Cookies look DELISH and I am baking them this weekend! Would love to receive the .PDF for sharing with friends! Thanks for your great recipes and website!
-Mary Kukla
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Mary!
Mary Elden says
Please send me the label pdf. Thanks!
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Mary!
Jackie King says
I would love to make labels for these yummy cookies. Also I would like the link for boxes and labels.
Thank you
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Jackie!
marietta chmelar says
Good morning! These cookies are the best. Please send me the labels and gift container. They give gift
giving a very professional look. Thanks for all your creations.
P S Thank you for the information on Josephs rolling pin .
Marietta from Chicago only city for snow.
Chris Scheuer says
So glad you enjoyed them, Marietta! We will send the labels your way.
Barbara Havens says
Loved these cookies! They are delicious! Please email me the label pdf so I can make them for gifts. Thank you.
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Barbara! Sending the labels your way!
Joy cross says
Great recipe thanks
Looking forward to trying them today!
Yes I would also like your PDF for the labels thanks
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Joy!
Sue L. says
Hi Chris,
Please send the pdf labels for these cookies. They are a festive addition to the packaging for gift giving.
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Sue! Enjoy!
Valerie Martinez says
Yes, please! I'd love the pdf of the labels and will try this recipe very soon. So glad I found you online!
Chris Scheuer says
Sending the labels your way, Valerie!
Carol says
Hi, I too would like the PDF file for the tags. Thanks!
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Carol!
Bonnie says
Please forward pdf file for labels.
Chris Scheuer says
Sure, Bonnie!