Dark Chocolate Shortbread

Tags

baked goods, biscuit, breakfast, brunch, chocolate, cocoa, cookie, dark chocolate, dessert, food, foodie, pie crust, postaday2011, recipe, shortbread, snack, sweet, tea, treat

The other day I made classic shortbread that is also really great dipped in dark chocolate. Last night, I modified my recipe and made chocolate shortbread, which would be really great dipped in white mint chocolate. These make a tasty after work snack or a brunch treat.

Dark Chocolate Shortbread

Chocolate Shortbread Ingredients:
2 c. flour, 1 1/4 c. butter softened, 1 c. sugar, 1 tsp. almond extract, 1 tsp. vanilla extract, 1/2 c. dark cocoa baking powder, 1/2 tsp. fresh ground sea salt, extra sugar for sprinkling

Chocolate Shortbread Directions:
Preheat oven to 300°F. Cream together butter, sugar and extract. In separate bowl combine flour, cocoa and salt. Stir flour into butter mixture 1/4 cup at a time. Chill dough for about an hour (it’ll help the flavors richer and make the dough more manageable). Press dough into pie dish or roll out on floured surface and use cookie cutters. Use prongs on fork to make designs on shortbread. Sprinkle with sugar before baking. Depending on thickness, bake for about 20 minutes. It’s hard to tell when it’s done due to the dark color of the dough. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. If you used a pie tin, cut shortbread into fantails before cooling. Serve at room temperature with hot tea or coffee.

I have a few of these tucked aside, to help me get through a busy weekend…
What does this weekend have in store for you?

Chicken Pot Pie

Tags

carrot, celery, chicken, chicken breast, chicken stew, corn, crust, dinner, dinner recipe, dough, lunch, lunch recipe, pie crust, pot pie, potato, recipe, rosemary, rosemary pie crust, savory pie crust, wheat germ

Yesterday, I had my nieces help me with dinner. I forgot how much longer it can take to make something, when you have kids doing it for the first time. While I made the filling, I talked them through making the dough. They each made enough dough for several pot pies, measuring, mixing and rolling it out. These are not exact measurements, I definitely estimated for the filling. The dough had more precise measurements.

Chicken Pot Pie

Filling Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb. chicken breasts, 2 large potatoes, 2 carrots, 3 stalked celery, 2 c. corn, 2 Tbsp. minced onions, 1 tsp. ground cumin, 2 tsp. paprika, 1 tsp. celery seed, 3 Tbsp. butter, 3 Tbsp. flour, 3 c. water, cooking wine, 2 bay leaves,  2 c. milk, fresh ground sea salt, fresh cracked black pepper.

Filling Directions:
Cube chicken. Over medium heat melt butter, added cumin, paprika and minced onions. Add chicken and cook until no longer pink. Remove chicken from pan. Chop celery, carrots and potatoes. Add vegetables, water, wine, celery seeds and bay leaves to frying pan, cover and reduce heat. Simmer until vegetables are tender. Remove bay leaves. Return chicken to pan, add milk, flour, salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

Dough Ingredients:
3 c. flour, 1/2 c. wheat germ, 1 c. butter, 1/2 c. vegetable oil, 2 Tbsp. rosemary, 2 tsp. salt, 1/2 c. water.

Dough Directions:
Mix ingredients together. Chill for two hours. Roll dough on a floured surface. Cut six smaller circles for the top crust and 6 larger circles for the bottom crusts.

Pot Pie Directions:
Preheat oven 350°F. Press large dough circle to bottom and sides of each dish. Scoop filling into dish and place smaller dough circle on top. Press seams together. Beat an egg and brush egg over top crust, cut a small slit in top of the crust. Bake on a tray for 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

My nieces worked really well in the kitchen, I am impressed with their developing culinary skills (they seemed to enjoy getting their hands messy in the dough).

*I didn’t have any cooking wine on hand, I used the only open bottle of wine I had, Hazlitt’s Red Cat.

This recipe would work well with beef as well. Any combination of you favorite vegetables would work well.

What do you do with teens in the kitchen?