Chocolate Shortbread

For Christmas I had  The Great British Book of Baking  and have been itching to try out some of the recipes. This one was requested by my kids who love shortbread, especially chocolate.

                     

Recipe
Makes 12

Ingredients
260g plain flour
100g caster sugar
40g cocoa powder
a pinch of sea salt
200g unsalted butter, chilled and diced
extra sugar for sprinkling

As the mixture is rich in cocoa, watch it carefully as it bakes so that it doesn't scorch. However, undercooked shortbread does not taste good either, so reduce the oven temperature if it begins to turn too brown before it is fully cooked.

• Preheat oven to 180C or gas 4 and grease well a 20.5cm loose-based sandwich tin.
• To make the shortbread in a food processor, put the flour, sugar, cocoa and salt into the bowl and pulse for a few seconds, just to combine indgredients. Add the butter and run the machine for about 30 seconds (until it looks like fine sand). Turn off the machine, remove the blade and transfer to prepared tin.
• To make the shortbread by hand, put the flour, sugar, cocoa and salt into a mixing bowl and stir well to thoroughly combine. Add the butter and rub into the dry ingredients, using the tips of your fingers. When the mixture looks like fine sandy breadcrumbs, tip into the prepared tin.
• Press the mixture into an even layer, using the back of a spoon. Prick the dough well and lightly score into 12 sections with a round-bladed knife.
• Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes, until just firm.
• Remove from the oven, sprinkle with sugar and cut into sections along the marked lines with a very sharp knife. Leave to cool before removing from the tin.
• Store in an airtight container.