heart shaped, salted butter, milk chocolate chunk, shortbread cookies

In an effort to stay relevant I made the most instagrammed cookie of the past year into a heart shape- the week before valentine’s day! In other breaking news, this morning we had avocado toast (I know avocado on toast, crazy right?) with an egg on it.

The part of me that saw Nirvana in a small club before Nevermind came out dies just a little bit each time I latch onto a trend as it’s driving into the thickest part of the crowd. But damn these cookies really are good and I made ‘em wrong! Well I made ‘em different.  I used the smitten kitchen recipe but subbed out roasted sugar for the regular granulated because I knew I’d be using milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate ( I like milk chocolate okay, don’t judge) because that is what I had enough of in the cabinet. Then I discovered I only had dark brown sugar so I subbed that and then I realized I’m out of all purpose flour so I used whole wheat pastry instead ( like the subtly nuttiness of whole wheat in chocolate chip cookies though I usually sub out less than half). If I might return to the Nirvana references again for a moment- a great song is the sort that sounds just as compelling played with just a guy on a stool strumming a guitar, it doesn’t need frills. A great recipe is one that easily adapts to a few changes and is still great, it doesn’t need all the frills and trumpets and drum solos. Just unplugged and heart-shaped because it’s february (again!!!?%*#).

heart shaped, salted butter, milk chocolate chunk, shortbread cookies

ingredients

• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (9 ounces or 255 grams) salted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) roasted granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (50 grams) dark brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups (295 grams) whole wheat pastry flour
• 6 ounces (170 grams) milk chocolate, roughly chopped into irregular chunks
• 1 egg
• Demerara, turbinado, raw, or sanding sugar, for rolling. In the absence of all those things I used pearlized sugar, gold.
• Flaky sea salt for sprinkling

instructions

1. Beat the butter, granulated and brown sugars, and vanilla with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, scraping down bowl as needed. Add flour, and mix just until combined. Add chocolate chunks, mix just until incorporated. Mixture will look crumbly.
2. Divide between two sheets of plastic wrap (you can also used wax paper or parchment but if shaping into hearts plastic wrap is much more forgiving) and use your hands to form the dough halves into log shapes about 2 to 2 1/4 inches in diameter. Wrap with the wrap and roll into logs or shape into hearts.
3. If shaping into hearts do this by making the log circle into a triangle with one pointy corner and two rounded ones, using the back edge of a knife or a chopstick, or the handle of a long wooden spoon (You get the idea) make an indent between the rounded corners and mold with finger tips until the log is…wait for it…heart shaped.
4. Chill until totally firm, about 2 hours.
5. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line one (or two if you are baking both halves at once, I saved one for later) large baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Lightly beat the egg and unwrap your chilled cookie heart logs (there must be a better way to say that but alas).
7. Brush the egg all over the sides of the dough. Sprinkle the decorative sugar on the open paper or plastic wrap and roll the logs into it, coating them. You might need to sprinkle some of the sugar to get it into the indent of the heart.
8. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut logs into 1/2-inch thick cookies. You’re going to hit some chocolate chunks, so saw gently, squeezing the cookie to keep it from breaking if needed. Arrange cookies on prepared sheets one inch apart and sprinkle each with a few flakes of salt. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, the whole wheat pastry flour makes it harder to tell when they are beginning to brown.
9. Give the cookies a few minutes to cool and then transfer to wire racks.
10. Do ahead: The dough can made ahead and stored, tightly wrapped in plastic, up to 1 week in the fridge, or 1 month in the freezer. Baked cookies keep in an airtight container for 5 days

heart shaped, salted butter, milk chocolate chunk, shortbread cookies

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Ingredients

  

• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons 9 ounces or 255 grams salted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup 100 grams roasted granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup 50 grams dark brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon 5 ml vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups 295 grams whole wheat pastry flour
• 6 ounces 170 grams milk chocolate, roughly chopped into irregular chunks
• 1 egg
• Demerara turbinado, raw, or sanding sugar, for rolling. In the absense of all those things I used pearlized sugar, gold.
• Flaky sea salt for sprinkling

Instructions

 

• Beat the butter, granulated and brown sugars, and vanilla with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, scraping down bowl as needed. Add flour, and mix just until combined. Add chocolate chunks, mix just until incorporated. Mixture will look crumbly.
• Divide between two sheets of plastic wrap (you can also used wax paper or parchment but if shaping into hearts plastic wrap is much more forgiving) and use your hands to form the dough halves into log shapes about 2 to 2 1/4 inches in diameter. Wrap with the wrap and roll into logs or shape into hearts.
• If shaping into hearts do this by making the log circle into a triangle with one pointy corner and two rounded ones, using the back edge of a knife or a chopstick, or the handle of a long wooden spoon (You get the idea) make an indent between the rounded corners and mold with finger tips until the log is…wait for it…heart shaped.
• Chill until totally firm, about 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line one (or two if you are baking both halves at once, I saved one for later) large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Lightly beat the egg and unwrap your chilled cookie heart logs (there must be a better way to say that but alas).
• Brush the egg all over the sides of the dough. Sprinkle the decorative sugar on the open paper or plastic wrap and roll the logs into it, coating them. You might need to sprinkle some of the sugar to get get it into the indent of the heart.
• Using a sharp serrated knife, cut logs into 1/2-inch thick cookies. You’re going to hit some chocolate chunks, so saw gently, squeezing the cookie to keep it from breaking if needed. Arrange cookies on prepared sheets one inch apart and sprinkle each with a few flakes of salt. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, the whole what pastry flour makes it harder to tell when they are beginning to brown.
• Give the cookies a few minutes to cool and then transfer to wire racks.
• Do ahead: The dough can made ahead and stored, tightly wrapped in plastic, up to 1 week in the fridge, or 1 month in the freezer. Baked cookies keep in an airtight container for 5 days

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