Silky easy shortcrust pastry with powdered sugar: the accidental discovery you won’t give up! The silky powdered-sugar recipe for cookies and tarts.
When you want an elegant result that literally melts in the mouth, I recommend using this recipe.
Here it is, the shortcrust is ready: it’s perfect for cookies, shells, or tarts. Whether you choose traditional oven baking for the timeless classics, or the speed of the air fryer for cookies ready in minutes, the result will always be impeccable. Once tried, it will become your favorite base!
You know that moment when you’re craving a tart, everything’s ready on the counter, but when you open the pantry you realize… the granulated sugar is gone?
Well, that’s exactly what happened. But I couldn’t give up, so I looked again and found a packet of powdered sugar.
I thought, “Let’s try it; at worst it won’t turn out like usual.” And instead? I was literally amazed.
The result was a dough with an incredible silkiness, almost buttery to the touch but compact. The real surprise came afterwards: it was so easy to work and roll out, something I’d never experienced before, and it had such a uniform that it looked like it came from an upscale pastry shop.
Why use powdered sugar? Unlike granulated sugar, it blends instantly with the fats in the butter without leaving grains, ensuring a very fine structure and a porcelain-smooth surface — ideal for modern tarts and decorated cookies.
Because of its fineness, powdered sugar is absorbed more quickly and evenly by the other ingredients, which lets you shorten the dough’s resting time: half an hour in the fridge is often enough before using it.
The beauty of this recipe is that it can also be prepared at the last minute with ingredients you usually have in your pantry. It’s an extremely versatile base that can be flavored with lemon, cocoa, or vanilla, and it’s perfect for any sweet idea: tarts, cookies, tartlets, crumble bases, and much more. Whether you use the oven or the air fryer, success is guaranteed!
Since that day, for me, shortcrust is only made this way!
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 10 Servings
- Cooking methods: No-cook
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
- Energy 333.66 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 39.05 (g) of which sugars 12.60 (g)
- Proteins 5.70 (g)
- Fat 17.89 (g) of which saturated 10.89 (g)of which unsaturated 6.78 (g)
- Fibers 0.84 (g)
- Sodium 122.79 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 85 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
Silky easy shortcrust pastry with powdered sugar
- 3 cups all-purpose (type 00) flour
- 3/4 cup + 2 tsp butter (Cold, cut into cubes)
- 1 cup powdered sugar (confectioners' sugar)
- 3 egg yolks
- to taste lemon (Grated zest of 1 organic lemon)
- 1 pinch salt
Tools
- Bowl
- Plastic wrap
- Work surface
Steps
Silky easy shortcrust pastry with powdered sugar
In a bowl (or on the work surface), first mix the flour with the powdered sugar and the grated lemon zest.
This ensures that the aromas and sweetness are evenly distributed.
Add the cold butter cubes from the fridge and a pinch of salt.
Start working with the tips of your fingers (or with the paddle attachment of a stand mixer), “pinching” the butter into the dry ingredients until you obtain a texture similar to fine, fragrant breadcrumbs.
At this point, add the 3 egg yolks.
Work the dough quickly.
You’ll see that, thanks to the initial mixing of flour and powdered sugar, the dough will become immediately smooth, homogeneous and incredibly pleasant to the touch.
Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
After resting time, your Silky Shortcrust Dough is ready: you’ll find it a pleasure to roll out.
The shortcrust pastry is ready to create irresistible sweets!
It’s simply perfect for every creation:
Cookies: they keep their shape and dress the table with their smooth surface.Shells: for modern tarts with clean, precise edges.
Classic tarts: for a Sunday dessert that will amaze everyone with its refined texture.
Just preheat the oven and let your imagination run!
Because this dough achieves a very even golden color, don’t wait until it turns dark brown! Shortcrust made with powdered sugar often looks slightly softer just out of the oven: this is normal.
It will firm up and become crisp and silky once completely cooled on a rack.
Tips
Baking Times and Temperatures
This dough bakes very evenly, but times vary depending on what you decide to make. Always use a conventional (static) oven (preheated) to avoid drying out the dough.
Classic cookies 356°F (180°C) — 10-12 min. Remove them when the edges just begin to brown.
Filled tart 356°F (180°C) — 30-35 min. If the jam darkens too much, cover with foil for the last 10 min.
Shell (blind baking) 347°F (175°C) — 20-25 min. Use weights or dried beans to keep the base from puffing up.
Petit four shells 356°F (180°C) — 8-10 min. Ideal for small tartlet shells to fill cold.
With this dough weighing about 30 oz (850 g) you can comfortably line a 10–11 in (26–28 cm) tart pan and still have enough left for classic tart strips or some decorative cookies!
Air Fryer Baking
Our silky shortcrust is great in the air fryer thanks to its compact structure. The circulating heat gives incredible crispness in half the time!
Cookies: Bake at 320°F (160°C) for 8-10 minutes.
Tip: Don’t overcrowd the basket; leave space between cookies so the air can circulate.
Tart (max mold 8 in / 20 cm): Bake at 320°F (160°C) for about 20-25 minutes.
My trick: If the surface is coloring too quickly, cover it with a small piece of parchment or foil in the last 5 minutes.
Tartlet shells: Bake at 329°F (165°C) for 7-9 minutes.
Note: In the air fryer the temperature should typically be about 27–36°F (15–20°C) lower than a traditional oven to avoid the outside burning while the inside remains raw.
How to store it
If you don’t use it all at once, the dough keeps perfectly:
In the fridge: wrapped in plastic wrap for 2-3 days.
In the freezer: up to 2 months. Thaw slowly in the fridge before rolling out.
Suggestions for other recipes
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