Olive Oil Shortbread with Rosemary & Chocolate Chunks, A Tale of Two Wedges
Last week was a busy work week and several evening commitments were on my to-do list. One of the realities of living in the Bay Area is the exceptionally ugly commute (up 1.5 hours to go 25 miles-yeah-go figure) so my commute has taught me to ALWAYS VOLUNTEER TO BRING DESSERT since I invariably run late. So my plan was to make cookies, I could make them in advance, bring them with me to work, go directly from work to each function, and be forgiven for being late because who gets mad at anyone who brings homemade cookies?!
I needed a vegan option as well as a regular sweet bite for the meetings. I decided the Grapefruit Thyme Shortbread (it’s my flavor of the month cookie) would be my non-vegan cookie. The vegan option was going to be a bit trickier, I am a butter-believer. As luck would have it, a recipe for Olive Oil Shortbread with Rosemary and Chocolate Chunks from Smitten Kitchen Every Day Cookbook popped up on my feed. Hmmm, now how did Facebook know I needed a vegan dessert recipe?
Not funny? Too soon?
Surprisingly (at least to me), the rosemary and chocolate meshed well. The flavors really stand out and I didn’t think about the no butter factor. The sprinkling of turbinado sugar on top provided a nice crunch while the cookie itself had a nice fine crumbly texture.
I changed the baking method for the Grapefruit Thyme Shortbread, my non-vegan option. Wanting a more traditional shortbread and keeping with my wedge theme, I baked it in a round pan and cut it into wedges right out of the oven. Unlike the first time I made them, this version had a casual, rustic appeal. While the cutout version had a fine crumb and crisp edges. These are a bit softer, almost cake-like, without the crisp edges. Still delightful, just different. Putting on my ATK hat, made sense due to the differences in baking methods. I consider this a bonus, 2 cookies for the “dough” of one.
Grapefruit Thyme Shortbread Post
Olive Oil Shortbread with Rosemary & Chocolate Chunks
Ingredients
- Smitten Kitchen /every Day by way of Food52
- 1 1/2 cups 195 grams all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup 60 grams powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons 25 grams, plus 1 teaspoon (5 grams) turbinado (raw) sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup 120 ml mild olive oil
- 1 teaspoon finely minced fresh rosemary leaves
- 1/2 cup 85 grams semisweet chocolate, chopped into small chunks
- 1 egg white beaten until loose (optional not vegan 🙁 )
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 325° F.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, and the salt.
- Add the olive oil and rosemary and stir to combine.
- Add the chocolate chunks and stir again.
- Gather the dough with your hands into one mass.
- Roll out the dough to an 8- to 9-inch roundish slab between two sheets of parchment paper. Remove the top sheet and use the bottom to slide the cookie round onto the back of a large baking sheet.
- If desired—it merely provides a little shine—brush the cookie with the egg white. Sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon turbinado sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Slide the cookie round carefully onto a cutting board while the cookie is still totally hot. Cut with a sharp, thin knife into desired shape(s). Let cool completely, then separate.
- Do ahead: This dough keeps well in the freezer. Baked cookies keep for 2 weeks in an airtight tin at room temperature.
- Note: For a milder flavor, replace half of the oil with a neutral/flavorless one. You can cut this into shapes with cookie cutters, too, but the chocolate provides a little resistance.