These Sparkling Butter Toffee Cookies are delicious butter cookies with toffee bits mixed in and then rolled in sugar.
These cookies have been one of my favorite holiday cookie recipes for a very long time (along with Candy Cane Kisses and Holly Cookies). The recipe originally comes from Land O Lakes. I spotted it years ago, tried it, and now I bake them every year. You can make sparkling butter toffee cookies all year long, but they are a great addition to holiday cookie platters too.
Ingredients needed:
- white sugar
- salted butter
- egg
- vanilla extract
- all purpose flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- toffee bits
- sparkling sugar
How to make Sparkling Butter Toffee Cookies:
The full printable recipe for these cookies is at the end of this post.
Combine the ingredients for the cookie dough using a hand mixer. Then stir in toffee bits. Use a cookie scooper to scoop out even portions of the dough. Roll the dough into balls, roll the balls in sparkling sugar and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Use the bottom of a glass to flatten the balls. To avoid having the glass stick to the dough, lightly moisten the bottom of the glass, dip it in sugar and use it to push down on the ball of dough.
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes. Sprinkle a little more sparkling sugar on top of the baked cookies as soon as they come out of the oven. Then let them cool completely.
Ingredient notes:
- toffee bits: These can be found in your market’s baking aisle where you see chocolate chips. They are sold in a bag. Be sure to buy toffee bits and not the toffee that has chocolate with it.
- sparkling sugar: You might be able to find a little jar of sparkling sugar in the baking aisle at your local market. Also check the baking section at Walmart or Michael’s. Or order sparkling sugar online. In a pinch, you can just roll in regular sugar, but you won’t get that extra sparkle.
The flavor of these sparkling butter toffee cookies is excellent. The toffee melts into the cookies while baking, but it also provides a little bit of crunch to the cookie. These happen to be good cookies for mailing if you would like to send someone a cookie gift package! Be sure to keep some for yourself. Enjoy!
Here are a few more holiday cookie recipes you might like to try:
- Butter Dream Cookies
- Chocolate Mint Kiss Crinkles
- Sugar Cookie Bites
- Chocolate Kiss Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Peppermint Puffs
Sparkling Butter Toffee Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup toffee bits (or more, as desired)
- additional sugar, for rolling (chunky sparkling white sugar works best)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat mats (or leave them ungreased).
- In a large bowl, use a hand mixer at medium speed to combine the sugar, butter, egg and vanilla. Scrape the bowl often while mixing, until creamy.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and beat until well mixed. Stir in the toffee bits by hand.
- Shape the dough into 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in sugar. Place them 2-inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets. Flatten each with the bottom of a glass to 1½-inch circles (if the glass sticks, moisten it and dip it in sugar).
- Bake the cookies for 9 to 11 minutes or until the edges are just lightly browned. Do not over bake. Sprinkle with additional sugar while warm. Cool completely.
Notes
- This is a great cookie for shipping- it travels well.
- Toffee bits are available in most market's baking aisles (near the chocolate chips).
- To really make these cookies sparkly, use "Bright White Sparkling Sugar"- which can be found in cooking supply stores.
- Stud a few additional toffee chips into the tops of the cookies before baking if you would like them to be more visible in the baked cookie.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These are so yummy! I also made your terrific peanut butter balls. Thanks for all the perfect recipes, Lori. Merry Christmas.
I made these over the holidays and everyone loved them. I am back on the site so that I can share the recipe with those who demanded it!
Awesome!
Tried these last night and they were perfect. I started them at 9 minutes but baked them for about 12 or 13 minutes (my oven). I love the way they look so uniform, and would be absolutely perfect for shipping. Do you think you could add almond extract with or instead of vanilla. I have visions of a butter toffee almond cookie – YUMMMMM
Sounds like that might be good to try!
Just made these but had to tweak them, I’m in Australia, supermarkets here don’t stock toffee bits, so I used caramel bits and the biscuits are delicious. At $4.99 for a tiny bottle of sparkling sugar though, these will be special occasion treats.
I made these last night, and they were fabulous. I used GOLD sugar. They looked nice with the golden color toffee pieces, but how do you keep them softer? As the next day they weren’t as soft, or should they be like that?
They’re a bit of a crunchy cookie.
Mine didn’t turn out as beautifully golden as the ones in your photo, but they were delicious and so easy to make. I think this recipe will have to be added into the Christmas cookie repertoire!
Will this recipe do good if made then frozen? How would i go about doing that…do i put sugar on first then freeze or make dough and freeze, then do the sugar before baking after defrosting?
You can make the entire recipe, then just freeze them as made.
Tried these cookies today and they are AMAZING! Thanks for sharing the recipe … I bragged on my blog about them and your site!
I LOVE these! I make them for every occasion, and always have guests asking for the recipe. I added cinnamon to sprinkle with the sugar at the end for an extra spice. THANK YOU for sharing.
Tried these and they were wonderful. Blogged bout them also, if youd like to read it:)