Chocolate cutouts
Why I Love This Recipe
My notes:
It turned out splendid! The dough was really easy to work with. I would recommend rolling it out between parchment paper and then putting in the fridge for a couple of hours before cutting. I ended up placing the dough in the fridge for about 30 minutes before I even attempted to roll it out. Then I rolled it out and left the parchment covered slabs in the fridge overnight. The next day I cut out the shapes and immediately put back in the fridge until it was time to bake. The dough is pretty tender so they hold their shape better when baked cold or frozen. I rolled them out to a pretty thick 1/4 inch and they turned out great. I used droste cocoa and drizzled them with simple royal icing. They were a favorite of my cookie tray at work. People kept going back to the break room and coming out with 3 or 4 at a time.
Here is a picture of how they turned out. This was part of my cookie tray for work. They are the stars in the back. They seemed really sturdy and I would think should ship well.
Ingredients You'll Need
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour (plus more for rolling out)
1 1/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (use Dutch-process if at all possible)
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
2 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
Sift together flour and cocoa powder in a bowl.
In another large bowl, cream butter, sugar, and salt until fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.
Add flour mixture; mix until thoroughly combined. Divide dough in half; wrap in plastic.
Chill at least 1 hour.
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Use parchment paper or silicone baking mats on cookie sheets.
On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness.
Cut into shapes and transfer to baking sheets, leaving an inch in between.
Re-roll (cooling off in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes as necessary) and recut dough scraps.
Bake for 8-10 minutes taking care not to overcook (like I do).
