Shortbread Cookies—Two Ways!
- Anderson Cole
- Jan 1, 2018
- 4 min read
I thought about cheating for this month’s challenge because I made cookies for Heritage Month. So, naturally, I thought I had accomplished the Cookie Month Challenge. But then I started feeling guilty. And the only way to get rid of this self-inflicted guilt was to make the cookies.
On my friend’s blog, Wild Wild Whisk (where I got the recipe for the pies I made for Pie Month), I saw the recipe for Chocolate Macadamia Nut Shortbread cookies. Let me say it again: CHOCOLATE. MACADAMIA NUT. SHORTBREAD COOKIES!!!!!!!!! My three favorite things in the world!!!!! Chocolate doesn’t need any introduction and anyone who knows me knows how much I love it. Macadamia nuts are my favorite rich-man nuts (cashews are my favorite poor man nuts). And shortbread cookies are just wonderfully dense doughy goodness. I smiled every time I thought about these cookies. I fantasized about these cookies. So I couldn’t wait to make them!
Macadamia nuts were hard to find (like I said earlier, they are rich-man nuts). Also, they are expensive (1 cup for $10.99)!!!!!!! But after having fantasized about these cookies for weeks, I couldn’t turn back now. So Monday night at 10:00 p.m., I started making them! And when the clock struck midnight, the cookies were ready to be eaten! I only have one word to describe the taste: HEAVENLY! I want everyone to eat these cookies and taste the magic! Without further ado, here is the recipe for these chocolatey pieces of heaven!
Chocolate Macadamia Nut Shortbread Cookies (recipe courtesy of Wild Wild Whisk: https://wildwildwhisk.com/chocolate-macadamia-nut-shortbread-cookies/)
(I swear I made these cookies, but I accidentally deleted the picture from my phone.)
Ingredients
8 oz. unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup macadamia nut, pulverized
1/4 scant teaspoon kosher salt
Extra granulated sugar
Directions
Let butter come to room temperature out on the counter; you want soft butter but not melted.
Pulverize 1 cup of macadamia nut in the food processor or blender until the pieces are about less than 1/4”, but not so small that you start making macadamia nut butter.
Measure out flour, cocoa powder, and salt into a medium mixing bowl. Add the macadamia nuts to the bowl as well, and mix with a whisk or spatula until thoroughly combined.
Add butter, sugar, and vanilla extract to the stand mixer bowl and beat with the paddle attachment until combined.
Reduce mixer speed to low, and slowly add the flour/nut mixture. Continue to mix on low speed until dough comes together. It should pull away from the side of the mixing bowl.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board or counter top, and shape and roll into a log 12” in length.
Wrap well with parchment paper and freeze for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Slice into 1/2” rounds, reshape slightly as needed, place on parchment lined baking sheet, and keep in the freezer.
Preheat oven to 350°F while the cookies are resting in the freezer.
When the oven is ready, take the baking sheet out of the freezer, sprinkle granulated sugar over the top of cookies generously, and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven, let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
You are still reading because either (1) you wanted to read this chocolate macadamia nut shortbread cookie recipe to the end so you can get ready to make your little bites of heaven, or (2) you are sharp and you remembered that the title of this post is “Shortbread Cookies—Two Ways,” and you knew that there was another shortbread recipe in this post. If you are in the latter group, you are right. I did try another shortbread cookie recipe. This one is from NY Times Cooking!
Salted Chocolate Chunk Shortbread Cookies (courtesy NY Times: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019152-salted-chocolate-chunk-shortbread-cookies)
Ingredients
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons/255 grams total (2¼ sticks) salted butter, cold (room temperature if you’re using a handheld mixer), cut into ½-inch pieces
½ cup/101 grams granulated sugar
¼ cup/55 grams light brown sugar
teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cups/326 grams all-purpose flour
6 ounces/170 grams semi-sweet or bittersweet dark chocolate, chopped (not too fine, you want chunks, not little shards)
1 large egg, beaten
Demerara sugar, for rolling
Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
Directions
Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer, beat the butter, both sugars, and vanilla on medium-high till it’s super light and fluffy (3 to 5 minutes for a stand mixer; 6 to 8 for a hand mixer). Using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl and, with the mixer on low, slowly add the flour, followed by the chocolate chunks, and mix just to blend. If necessary, knead the dough with your hands to make sure the flour is totally incorporated. At this point, the dough should be smooth and feel like Play-Doh with no pockets of flour.
Divide the dough in half, placing each half on a large piece of plastic wrap. Fold the plastic over so that it covers the dough to protect your hands from getting all sticky. Using your hands, form the dough into a log shape; rolling it on the counter will help you smooth it out, but don’t worry about getting it totally perfect. (Don’t be afraid to make them compact. Shortbread is supposed to be dense. That’s part of why it’s so good.) You can also do this using parchment paper, if you prefer, but plastic wrap is easier when it comes to shaping the log. Each half should form a 6-inch log, 2 to 2¼-inches in diameter. Chill until totally firm, about 2 hours.
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Brush the outside of the logs with the beaten egg and roll them in the demerara sugar (this is for those really delicious, crisp edges).
Using a serrated knife, carefully slice each log into ½-inch-thick rounds (if you hit a chocolate chunk, slowly saw back and forth through the chocolate). If the cookies break or fall apart, just press them back together—the dough is very forgiving. Place them on the prepared baking sheets about 1 inch apart (they won’t spread much). Sprinkle with flaky salt. Bake until the edges are just beginning to brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly before eating them all.
Comments