Fresh herbs, floral French liqueur, and fragrant chocolate. If you haven't tasted this formula then my chocolate shortbread would be a fantastic simple recipe to start with!
You can even buy tarragon in the grocery store if you aren't growing it in your garden.
The shortbread is dense and slightly chewy, but with the signature flakiness you expect from shortbread. And then there's the melt-in-your-mouth buttery bliss!
The licorice flavor is wonderful with the chocolate and Hpnotiq is a fruity, floral French vodka with a touch of Cognac so the glaze adds a bit of sharpness from the vodka and a warmth from the Cognac.
It just gives a little lift to the chocolate taste and because these aren't super sweet that extra swirl of sugar is a perfect balance.
Shortbread is easy, versatile, and accepting of so many delicious ingredients like Citrus Cognac And Rosemary Walnut Shortbread
Browse through your herb garden and your liqueur cabinet and start mixing it up. Even if everything doesn't turn out the way you expected and it takes more than one attempt, just be creative and have fun!
For more creative food, flavor, and spirits pairings jump over to the sidebar and click on any of the book covers to preview a sample of my cookbooks!
Shortbread Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons finely ground dry roasted salted macadamia nuts
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh tarragon
¼ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar for sprinkling on top
Directions For Shortbread
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-inch-square glass baking dish.
Line with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on all 4 sides. Whisk the flour,
macadamias, cocoa powder, tarragon, and salt together in a bowl. Set aside.
Beat the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with a mixer until light
and fluffy. Add the flour mixture and beat until just combined (the dough will
be crumbly). Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.
Prick the dough all over with a fork. Then use a sharp knife to carefully cut
it into 16 strips. It may seem like the dough is too dry but it will be fine
once baked. Sprinkle with the turbinado sugar. Refrigerate until the dough is
firm, about 10 minutes.
Bake until the shortbread is slightly puffed and firm, 32 to 35 minutes. Remove
the pan from the oven and immediately retrace the strips with a knife. Cool
completely in the pan on a rack. Lift up the parchment paper to remove the
shortbread from the pan. Separate into bars. Store in an airtight container up
to 1 week or freeze up to 2 or 3 months.
Glaze Ingredients
1/3 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons Hpnotiq liqueur
Directions For Glaze
Whisk ingredients together into a drizzling consistency.
Separate bars onto a cookie rack with parchment or waxed paper underneath.
Using a spoon drizzle glaze over each. Allow a few hours to harden before
trying to stack them but do place them single layer into a container after
about ½ hour so they do not dry out.
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