Chocolate Shortbread Hearts Recipes

Steps:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar, and vanilla until combined. On slow speed, beat in flour and salt until combined. Wrap dough in plastic wrap; chill until firm, at least 2 hours, or overnight.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until 1/16-to-1/8 inch thick. Cut out hearts with a 2-inch heart cookie cutter. Transfer cookies to an ungreased baking sheet; chill for 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 300 degrees with a rack in the center. Press the tines of a fork into each cookie to make designs. Bake until just beginning to brown around the edges, about 18 minutes. (Cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for about 5 days.)
• In the top of a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl set over simmering water, melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally. Stir in the oil. Dip half or one third of each cookie into the chocolate mixture. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack to dry, or place them on a piece of parchment paper in the freezer for 10 minutes. Serve.

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder and salt.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in yolk, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Mix in flour mixture until just combined. Form dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
• Once chilled, remove plastic wrap and sandwich dough between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll it out into a 1/2-inch-thick slab. Leaving dough between the parchment, place it on a baking sheet or large plate and refrigerate for 30 minutes (or up to 24 hours).
• Heat oven to 325 degrees, and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Pull dough from refrigerator, and remove parchment from dough. Using a 2-inch heart-shaped cutter, cut out as many hearts as possible. Transfer them to the prepared cookie sheets. Reroll the dough scraps and repeat.
• Bake cookies for 18 to 23 minutes, until puffed and set, rotating the cookie sheets halfway through. Transfer pans to wire racks to cool completely.
• In a heatproof measuring cup, melt chocolate in the microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring in between.
• Dip half of each cooled cookie in melted chocolate, letting the excess drip back into measuring cup. Place back on parchment-lined baking sheets, and sprinkle chocolate with crushed raspberries, if using. Let cool until chocolate is set, then store in an airtight container.

Steps:

• Dark-chocolate shortbread: In a bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and salt. Beat butter on medium speed until creamy; add confectioners' sugar and beat until combined, then beat in vanilla. Add flour mixture and beat just until combined. Wrap dough in plastic, flatten to a 1-inch-thick disk, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
• White-chocolate shortbread: In a bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Beat butter with white chocolate on medium speed until creamy; add confectioners' sugar and beat until combined, then beat in vanilla. Add flour mixture and beat just until combined. Wrap dough in plastic, flatten to a 1-inch-thick disk, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
• Remove both disks from refrigerator; let stand 10 minutes. Roll out dark-chocolate dough 1/8 inch thick between two pieces of floured parchment. Stamp out heart shapes with largest cookie cutter; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Gather dough scraps, reroll, and stamp out more heart shapes with largest cutter. Freeze cutouts until firm, about 15 minutes. Repeat with white-chocolate dough.
• Stamp out smaller hearts from larger ones, starting with second-largest cutter and working down to smallest cutter; transfer cutouts to parchment-lined sheets. Freeze cutouts until firm, about 15 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Starting with smallest cutouts and working up to largest, fit together dark- and white-chocolate cutouts like puzzle pieces. (It's okay if dough cracks or breaks in places; simply press back together as necessary.) Arrange completed hearts 1 inch apart on fresh parchment-lined baking sheets. Freeze again until firm. Working in two batches, bake cookies, rotating sheets and rack positions halfway through, until dry and firm, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks; let cool completely. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• Mix flour and cocoa powder together in a bowl.
• Beat butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sugar and vanilla extract; mix well. Mix in flour mixture gradually, 1/2 cup at a time, until incorporated; dough will resemble damp sand.
• Press dough firmly into a 9x13-inch baking pan. Cut into 1x2-inch rectangles. Prick each rectangle a few times lightly with a fork.
• Bake in the preheated oven until top looks dry and edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool before lifting out of the pan.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar and salt; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in water and extract until mixture forms a ball. , On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with a lightly floured 2-1/2-in. cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. , Bake at 325° for 13-16 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely. Dip one side of cookies in candy coating; allow excess to drip off. Place on waxed paper; let stand until set.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
• Roll the dough 1/2-inch thick and cut with a 3-inch heart-shaped cutter. Place the hearts on an ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown.
• Allow to cool to room temperature.

Steps:

• Combine flour and salt in a medium bowl; set aside. Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until just combined. Do not whip. Add vanilla; mix. Add flour mixture; mix on low until dough starts to come together. Transfer to a floured board; knead into a ball. Wrap in plastic; chill 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough on a floured surface to 1/4 inch thick. Cut out heart shapes using a 3-inch heart cookie cutter. Place hearts on an ungreased baking sheet, and bake until lightly browned, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
• While cookies bake, melt chocolate in a small bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Add shortening; whisk until smooth. Dip cooled shortbread into chocolate to coat surface evenly, or brush on with pastry brush; let set. Color remaining chocolate mixture, and pipe onto cookies as desired.