Filled Shortbread Cookies

Origin of Shortbread: Scottish

Such a buttery sweet cookie filled full of a sweet cream or a chocolaty spread.

Makes about: 36-40 cookies or 18-20 sandwiches

Time: 2 hours

Difficulty: 1.5 Out of 5

Ingredients: Cookie

2 cups flour - sifted

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ingredients - Chocolate Spread

3 ounces chocolate

Ingredients - White Cream Spread

2 tablespoons vegetable shorting

2 1/3 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon almond milk - add another if the frosting is still too dry

Instructions: Cookie

- Step 1 - Sift Flour and Salt

In a large bowl sift 2 cups of flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt and set aside.

- Step 2 - Cream Your Butter

In a large bowl cream 1 cup of unsalted butter.

- Step 3 - Add the Powdered Sugar

Once your butter is creamed add the 1/2 cup powdered sugar till mixed well.

- Step 4 - Add the Vanilla

Mix in the 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract in the butter bowl.

- Step 5 - Slowly Add the Flour Mixture

Add your flour mixture a third at a time into the butter mixture.

- Step 6 - Form a Dough and Plastic Wrap

Spread out a layer of plastic wrap on your counter and poor your cookie dough into the middle. Your dough will be crumbly. Form a dough ball and wrap it up in the plastic wrap.

- Step 7 - Refrigerate for 1 Hour

Do exactly as the step says, refrigerate for about an hour.

- Step 8 - Roll Out the Dough and Cut out Those Cookies

Sprinkle some flour onto your clean counter and start to roll out the batter till it is about 1/8th inch think and use a cpokie cutter to cut out your intended shape. I made squirrels.

I made all my squirrels facing the same direction, but it you want both sides of your cookies to be the same, make sure you flip your cookie cutter to the other side to make a front and a back and not a top and a bottom (like I did)

- Step 9 - Bake

Bake the cookies for about 13-15 minutes or until they are a light brown.

- Step 10 - Cool

After they cool for about a minute on the baking sheet, transfer to a cooking rack and wait till completely cooled.

Ingredients - Chocolate Spread

- Step 11- Melt the Chocolate

Melt 3 oz of chocolate in a double boiler. You can use what ever chocolate you like most - dark chocolate, milk chocolate, or white chocolate.

I had a really dark chocolate and I'm not the biggest fan of dark chocolate, so I added a splash of milk.

- Step 12 - Spread Chocolate on Cookies

Spread chocolate on one cookie and sandwich another one on.

Ingredients - White Cream Spread

- Step 13 - Mix the Ingredients

In a large bowl mix 2 tablespoons of vegetable shorting, 2 1/3 cups of powdered sugar (I added this in slowly to not make a mess), and 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract.

Mix till combined.

- Step 14 - Mix in Almond Milk

Your frosting will be dry, so you'll want to add 1 tablespoon of almond milk and mix till your get a nice creamy frosting.

If it still seems too dry add another tablespoon of almond milk; but be careful, you an go from creamy to too wet really fast.

- Step 15 - Spread Cream on Cookies

Take one cookie and spread cream on the bottom and take another cookie and sandwich the two together. Set in a flat place to let dry.

- Step 16 - Eat Those Buttery Yummy Cookies

I found this recipe on "Serious Eats" and I used the same cookie base, but used melted chocolate for one spread and a vanilla paste as the second spread.