Mix just five top-quality ingredients and voilà - you've got French butter cookies. Also known as Palets Bretons, these buttery, salted biscuits from Brittany are thick and crumbly. Easy to make, they also double up as a pastry base in many elegant French desserts.
I finally got around to making these last night, Jill, and honestly, what took me so long? They were perfect with tea ... so easy and delicious! Another great recipe from you! - Betty
What are French Butter Cookies?
French butter cookies are classic Breton biscuits made with salted butter, egg yolks, sugar, flour, and a touch of baking powder. Known locally as Palets Bretons, they’re thicker and more rustic than their delicate cousin, the Sablé Breton.
You’ll find them everywhere in Brittany - from artisan bakeries to supermarket shelves - but homemade always wins. Once you taste them fresh out of the oven, I can vouch there’s no going back to packaged versions! I'd say hands down that salted butter cookies are the most popular cookies in France.
A Short History of Palets Bretons
The traditional French butter cookie has a proud history in Brittany. The original Palet Breton was created in 1920 by Alexis Le Villain at Traou Mad® in Pont Aven. It's a busy, artistic town; when we've been in summer, there are queues for them in all the local bakeries!
Other great authentic brands include the Biscuiterie des Vénètes from the Morbihan, Brittany. Their cookies stand out with less sugar, more salt, and deep, buttery flavour.
Flying to France? You might have nibbled on a La Mère Poulard biscuit – often slipped into French airline snack packs as your introduction to butter biscuits. It’s the rich, salty-sweet buttery flavour that makes them so addictive. Just try stopping at one!
Sablés Breton vs. Palets Bretons: What's the Difference?
Both are made with salted French butter, flour and yolks - but their texture and thickness set them apart:
- Sablés Bretons: Thin, delicate biscuits with a shiny yolk glaze, no baking powder and often finished with a criss-cross pattern. They crumble beautifully: sablé means 'sand' in French, describing their melt-in-the-mouth texture.
- Palets Bretons; Thicker (around 1.5cm), slightly airy thanks to baking powder, with a rustic look and crumbly texture. They look like iron disks (palets) from the Breton game Le Palet Breton, hence why they got their name.
Want to make Sablés Bretons instead? Use the exact recipe but skip the baking powder, roll the dough thinner and reduce the baking time. Voilà - instant Sablés.
Best Butter for Traditional French Butter Biscuits
The secret to any great French butter cookie is, unsurprisingly, the butter.
Authentic Palets Bretons use a generous amount (about 20%) of high-quality salted butter from Brittany, on France’s North Coast.
In Brittany, bakers use salted butter with at least 82% butterfat. This gives that trademark salty-sweet flavour and a light, crumbly texture. If you can find French or European-style butter, use it for the best results.
Otherwise, add a good pinch of flaky sea salt (like fleur de sel from the Guérande, Maldon or Celtic sea salt) to the best unsalted butter you can find.
Avoid margarine or (low-fat) spreads - they'll ruin the texture and flavour.
Ingredients for Authentic Salted Butter Cookies
Palets Bretons need just a few simple ingredients:
- Good-quality salted butter (softened)
- Egg yolks
- Sugar
- Plain or all-purpose flour
- Baking powder
Note: Palets Bretons do not contain buckwheat flour. That's for savoury Galettes, the famous Breton savoury buckwheat crêpes, not these buttery biscuits.
For a savoury variation, try my cheese sablés - mini salted butter cookies that are great for a French apéritif.
How to Make French Butter Cookies (Palets Bretons)
Forget fancy pastry rings. This easy method is quicker and foolproof:
- Mix softened butter, sugar, egg yolks, flour & baking powder into a soft cookie dough either by hand or in a stand mixer at medium speed.
- Shape into a sausage and chill for 30 minutes.
- Slice rounds like shortbread cookies and place in unbuttered muffin moulds on a baking tray.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 18–20 minutes until golden.
Using muffin tins keeps the cookies perfectly round and gives them that classic thick Palet Breton shape.
This recipe makes about 10 large French butter cookies (around 156 calories each).
Prefer mini versions? Use mini muffin moulds - or double the recipe for more if you like the bigger size.
Storage and Freezing
Wrap the dough log in plastic wrap and freeze for up to a month. Defrost from the freezer to the fridge overnight before slicing and baking as needed.
My Top Tips for Baking Palets Bretons
Avoid bitter biscuits! French butter cookies are delicate - so don’t overbake them. Check them around 15 minutes. If they’re golden, they’re done. Let them cool in the moulds for a few minutes, then lift them out onto a wire rack.
Use an oven thermometer if your oven tends to run hot - it makes all the difference.
How to Serve French Butter Cookies
These salted butter cookies are best enjoyed as they are - no vanilla, lemon zest, or cinnamon needed. I prefer their pure flavour of good salted butter.
Serve them:
- Simply solo with a pot of tea or espresso at Teatime or French goûter (you've been warned, they're addictive)
- desserts such as crème caramel, chocolate crème brûlée, or
- enjoy with rice pudding topped with crunchy nougatine.
- Topped with a macaron shell from my salted caramel macarons recipe - à la Brittany.
Use Palets Bretons as a French Pastry Base
French pâtisseries often use these butter cookies as a sturdy base for elegant desserts. Try topping them with:
What to Do with Leftover Egg Whites?
You’ll have 2 egg whites left from this recipe – don’t waste them! Here are a few ideas, including more egg white recipes:
- financier teacakes
- coconut macaroons (rochers coco)
- tuiles (French almond cookies)
Store egg whites in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze them for later.
French Butter Cookies (Palets Bretons)
Ingredients
- 90 g (3oz/½ cup) butter (unsalted)* at room temperature
- 75 g (2.5oz/ ⅓ cup) sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt (fleur de sel) omit if using good quality French salted butter
- 2 egg yolks organic
- 125 g (4oz/1 cup) Plain flour (all-purpose)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
Instructions
- Using a mixer, beat together the softened butter, sugar and salt until light and creamy. Mix in the egg yolks then the flour and baking powder until a lovely soft dough forms.(If you don’t have a mixer or electric whisk, this can be done by hand in a large bowl).
- Using the palm of your hands, roll the dough back and forward to create a sausage shape until the diameter is the size of your moulds (here I used mini muffin silicone moulds @5cm diameter). Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to set the sausage shape.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C/360°F (160°C fan/gas mark 4).
- Cut disks of 1.5cm (¾ inch) and press them into the muffin moulds (unbuttered – there’s enough butter in the biscuits!)
- Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Leave to cool in the moulds then turn them out on to a baking rack, pretty side up.
Video
Notes
Also delicious topped with chocolate mousse, Chantilly cream and strawberries. Measures: Please note that all my recipes are best made using digital kitchen scales in precise metric grams. Both ounces (and cups) are given as a guide.
This recipe was originally published 10 April 2016. Now updated to include its accompanying recipe video.
Val Copestake
The Palets Breton is my go-to biscuit recipe. It’s a family favourite and I make it regularly for my quilting group. They love it. I use fleur de sel and salted french butter if I can get it. ( Very naughty! Extra salt) and the added bonus——- egg whites for macarons! I freeze mine until I’m ready to use them. Merci Jill x
Jill Colonna
Thrilled to hear this Val and wish I could join in your quilting group. Sounds like a delicious get-together! Thanks so much for taking the time to share this - and here's to your macaron-making!
Camille
J’adore! Delicieux avec le thé ou un café. Recette simple, avec moins de jaunes d’oeuf que d’autres.
Jill Colonna
Merci beaucoup, Camille. je suis ravie que cette recette vous plaise. Bon dimanche !
Lisa
Hi there,
How long do these biscuits last once baked? Are they like shortbread biscuits that are better over time, or best eaten soon after baking? I’m wondering if I can make them the night before serving for a breakfast treat ?
Jill Colonna
Hello Lisa,
Thanks for this question as I'll answer this in the post. Yes, they are great just after baking and can keep for about 5 days stored in an airtight tin box, for example. So you can have them for breakfast next morning no problem. In France we don't eat them for breakfast - so now I'm thinking I'll try them for a change!
Let me know what you think of the recipe.
Jill
Meg
Super easy but so delicious! My only problem is that I could have easily eaten them all myself. Highly recommend!
Jill Colonna
Too funny Meg. Thanks for the delicious feedback x
Max
I'd seen your brilliant Youtube video on this one and now with this great recipe I will get on doing it ASAP
thank you Jill Colonna
A.A
what would be the weight of the egg yolks?
Jill Colonna
The weight for one regular medium egg yolk is 18 grams so 36g for 2 egg yolks. I haven't given the precise amount in grams here because it's ok if your eggs are a little bigger by a few grams out. Hope this helps and apologies for the late response. I have been offline a few days but back again!
A.A
No worries
thank you for the response. ?
Thomasina
I have tasted these in Brittany and did wonder how they were made so I'm so happy to have found your recipe. I love your ideas for making them so attractive.
Jill Colonna
So thrilled you like this. I can't believe how many years I bought them in France and thought they were difficult to make when they're that easy!
Betty
I finally got around to making these last night, Jill, and honestly, what took me so long? They were perfect with tea and I had them ready when Victor came in from shoveling the big snow we got. They were so easy and delicious! Another great recipe from you! Bravo!! xo
Jill Colonna
I'm so glad you enjoy them Betty and see how easy they are too! Stay cosy x
Manjiri C
How delicious these look Jill, I can't stop looking at all your lovely photos with such a huge variety of toppings! I would love to have these with some fresh cream and strawberry topping ummmm
Jill Colonna
Thrilled to hear you're tempted to make them, Manjiri. Thanks for popping in for tea!
Vikkie Lee
These look so delicious!! Love eating food in France - have so many memories 😀
Jill Colonna
Thanks, Vikkie - well let's hope that these bring back your memories of France too!
Christophe Blanchut
Great recipe. It works wonders as a base for a lemon pie with or without meringue.
Jill Colonna
Thanks, Christophe. Of course! I forgot lemon pie - this would be fantastic as a base. Thanks for adding your delicious thoughts!
Christina
They look absolutely brilliant, and I can almost taste that French butter in them! OMG, if only I could use such good French butter in all my baking! Kerrygold will have to do! Have to try these, soon! Thanks for another fab recipe!
Jill Colonna
Thanks Christina - good to know that Kerrygold is a good bet in the USA.
Jenny
Thanks for posting this recipe Jill - we have used your previous one and love it. Works every time and quick to make a batch. It's a while since we made them so thanks for the reminder - I'll bake them tomorrow or the kids will. Great photos. Happy Easter to you!
Jill Colonna
Thanks Jenny - glad you'll have a printable recipe for the family now. Happy Easter to you too and enjoy them.