Chocolate Petticoat Tails

The amazing thing about shortbread is that really, you only need three ingredients to make a darn delicious cookie: butter, flour, and sugar. A few additions like cocoa and salt are nice additions but not absolutely imperative. This buttery chocolate shortbread was baked in a fluted tart shell to give it a pretty scalloped edge.

Tip: Cutting the wheel into the "petticoat tails" can be a little tricky to do without breaking the narrow points. Allow the shortbread to cool for about 15 minutes before cutting straight down using a chef's knife. The cookie should be cool enough so that it "sets", but not so cool that it becomes crunchy and crumbly.  

Chocolate Shortbread

1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (25 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder (regular or Dutch-processed)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) with the rack in the center of the oven. Lightly butter, or spray with a non stick vegetable spray, an 8-9 inch (20-23 cm) tart pan with a removable bottom.

In a bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt.
Then, in the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugar until smooth (about 2 - 3 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract and egg yolk. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the flour cocoa mixture to the butter and sugar mixture and beat just until a dough forms.
Press the shortbread dough in an even layer onto the bottom of the tart pan. Bake for about 20 - 25 minutes, or just until the shortbread no longer looks wet and is firm to the touch. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack.

Recipe credit Absolutely Chocolate via Joy of Baking
Image property of beetsandbites