Mexican Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
Serves 24
15 mins prep
10 mins cook
40 mins Chill Time
65 mins total
These buttery shortbread cookies are full of chocolate, cinnamon-and-sugar, and a bit of spice thanks to a couple unique ingredients! They remind me of a good cup of Mexican hot chocolate, in cookie form.
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Making the Dough - To a large bowl, add the flour, cocoa, cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne, salt, pepper, and whisk to combine; set aside.
To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and handheld electric mixer), add the butter, granulated sugar, vanilla, and beat together on medium-high speed until fluffy and creamy. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Note - There is no egg nor brown sugar in this recipe, it's not a typo.
Add the dry ingredients in two additions to the wet, beating on low speed after each additon until just incorporated and repeat until all the dry ingredients have been incorporated; don't overmix. Tip - The dough will be stiff and thick; this is normal. If you're using a hand mixer, you may need to get in there with a wooden spoon and some elbow grease!
Shaping the Dough - You have two choices. You can either roll the dough into a long cylinder, about 2-inches in diameter, and tightly wrap in like a tootsie roll in parchment paper. OR you can roll it out in between two pieces of parchment to 1/4-inch thickness.
Refrigeration - Either way (log or flat piece of dough), you need to chill the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat liners; set aside.
Making the Cookie Shapes - If you made a log, slice off pieces that are 1/2-inch thick, and place them on the baking sheets, evenly spaced. If you are making cutout cookies, use the cookie cutters of your choice and cut them out. I suggest cutters that are about 2 1/2-3 inches in diameter. I used small stars. You can reroll the dough scraps once and cut out the remaining cookies that you can.
Optionally (but recommended) sprinkle the cookies with coarse sugar. You can optionally sprinkle them with sprinkles or jimmies, as desired.
Baking - Bake the cookies for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until set. Tips - Exact baking time will depend on exactly how thick you sliced the log or how large your cutout shapes are; as well as climate and oven variances. Bake one sheet of cookies at a time, on the middle rack, rotating the baking sheet once midway through baking for the most optimal results. If you made larger cookies, they may take longer than 10 minutes to cook. Do not overbake. Cookies will continue to firm and set up as they cool.
Dusting - If desired, you can lightly dust the cookies with confectioners' sugar after they have cooled completely.