Espresso Shortbreads
Crisp shortbread cookies made with espresso and a luscious chocolate icing are the perfect treat for your sweetheart!
Servings: 4 dozen
Calories: 268kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup (8 ounces) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
- ½ cup confectioner's sugar
- ½ tsp. table salt
- 2 Tbs. espresso or coffee or tea decaf or regular
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
Instructions
- In a small bowl, add the cocoa powder to the flour by whisking it together; set aside. Using a paddle attachment on your mixer on low speed, beat the butter and confectioner's sugar until smooth, about 1-2 minutes, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. Add in the espresso, vanilla, and salt and beat until combined.
- Add the flour/cocoa powder mixture and mix on low speed until combined (about 3 minutes), making sure not to overmix the dough.
- Dump the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap and flatten into a disk. Chill for 30-60 minutes (or until the dough is firm enough to work with).
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to about ¼ inch thick. Make sure you're rolling it out evenly so the cookies will bake evenly.
- Using a heart or other shape cookie cutter, cut out shapes as close to one another as possible. Use the scraps to roll out and cut more cookie shapes. Chill dough a little bit more if it becomes sticky. Arrange the cookies on two parchment-lined baking sheets and refrigerate until chilled, at least 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Bake the cookies until golden on the bottom and edges and pale to golden on top, 13-18 minutes.
- Cool and spread on some melted chocolate or Nutella. Add Maldon salt or sprinkles.
Notes
- Butter measurement: You need 1 cup cold unsalted butter, which equals 8 ounces, 226 grams, or 2 sticks in US measurement. Use cold butter straight from the fridge and cut it into 1.25 cm pieces for even mixing.
- If you only have a kitchen scale, measure 226 g of butter for accuracy. Weighing gives the most consistent results.
- Do not overmix once you add the flour and cocoa. Overmixing develops gluten and makes the cookies tough instead of tender.
- Chill the dough fully before rolling. Cold dough prevents spreading and keeps the cookie shapes sharp.
- If the dough becomes sticky while rolling, place it back in the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Roll evenly to about 6 mm thick so the cookies bake at the same rate.
- Bake just until the bottoms are lightly golden. Overbaking will dry them out.
- Finish with melted chocolate, Nutella, flaky sea salt, or sprinkles for contrast and texture.
Nutrition
Calories: 268kcal | Carbohydrates: 72g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Sodium: 241mg | Potassium: 136mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 0.4g | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 4mg