I have nostalgic childhood memories of deliciously chunky Chocolate Shortbread from my school days. Sometimes it was covered in mint custard and sometimes served alone cut into triangles and sprinkled in sugar. Either way it was just lush. This recipe brings it back into your grown up home albeit sans mint custard. I don't miss it with this recipe, it is just so incredibly good.
A piece of this and a hot cup of something makes me forget all my parental stress just for a chocolate shortbread moment and we all need some of those.
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Chocolate Shortbread Recipe
In that first bite I am back at school clutching twenty pence in my ink stained fingers and queuing in the dinner hall at break.
We were actually spoilt for choice at school and I still remember with adult longing the chocolate cracknell and Iced Buns that were freshly baked each day by the scary dinner ladies with white hats and ruddy hands.
How lucky were we? Nowadays the poor kids are lucky if they even get a sniff at school of a full fat yoghurt.
There is a full printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
This is as easy as any recipe gets.
Equipment Required
- food processor, free standing mixer, hand held electric whisk or large mixing bowl and wooden spoon
- scales
- 8 " square baking tin or similar - lined with baking paper or a reusable liner such as bakoglide
Recipe
- 225 grams ( 8oz) plain flour
- 50 grams ( 1.5oz) cocoa powder
- 140 grams ( 5oz) caster sugar
- 200 grams ( 7oz) unsalted butter
- I simply put the dry ingredients in my food processor and whizz to combine.
- You can make this recipe just as easily in a free standing mixer using the paddle attachment or with an electric hand held whisk.
- Or just in a mixing bowl using a wooden spoon to combine the ingredients. It is of course more time consuming than using the machines. Perhaps allow the butter to be softer and then chill the dough for 10 minutes before rolling out.
- Empty the mixture out into the tin and simply press it into a loose bottomed lined tin. I use Bake-O-Glide, a silicone reusable liner in my 8 " square baking tin and use a spoon to level it off and smooth it over.
- Bake it at 180 C/160 Fan/350 F/Gas Mark 4 for 25 mins or firm to the touch. It will firm up as it cools.
- Leave in tin to cool.
- Cut into triangles for nostalgic cocoa heaven.
- However any shapes will do. I'm just all about the retro here.
- Most suitably it is perfect for Lunchboxes.
Can you make Chocolate Shortbread Cookies with this recipe?
Yes and I have lots of times. I make them just as I do my classic Easy Shortbread Cookies.
- Simply roll the dough out to 1 cm thickness either between two pieces of baking paper or on a floured work surface with a little flour on top of the dough and on the rolling pin.
- Cut out the biscuits with your chosen cutters and transfer to a lined baking tray.
- Bake for about 12 minutes at 180 C/160 Fan/350 F/Gas Mark 4
- Leave on the baking tray to cool for a few minutes before carefully removing to a wire rack to cool completely
- Store in a airtight container and they will last perfectly for about 14 days.
- I have frozen these cut out into shapes before baking and then baked from frozen for about 15 minutes at the normal temperature. I froze them cut out on a baking tray for an hour first before putting them all in a freezer bag and leaving them in there. They will last for a month frozen.
Tips
- You can make this recipe just as in the food processor in a free standing mixer using the paddle attachment or just in a mixing bowl. Simply use a wooden spoon to combine the ingredients. It is of course more time consuming than using the machines. Perhaps allow the butter to be softer and then chill the dough for 10 minutes before rolling out.
- I do wholeheartedly recommend a little independent oven thermometer. Oven temperatures can vary greatly even when your oven says it is at an accurate temperature. They are not always to be trusted. Watch the shortbread for the last five minutes in the oven to intervene if the top starts to burn. Turn the oven down a little or place a sheet of silver foil on top. If you use the silver foil you may need to bake for a little longer.
- You are looking for a firm top to the shortbread.
- The recipe is great for Chocolate Shortbread Cookies too.
- If the dough becomes difficult to handle/sticky when making Cookies then place the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.
- Store the Chocolate Shortbread in an air tight container and it will last well for up to 2 weeks.
- You can make this a gluten free recipe by using gluten free flour. However the texture may well be a little denser.
More Chocolate Recipes
- Chocolate Cookies
- Millionaires Shortbread
- Delicious Traybake Recipes
- Easy Chocolate Brownies
- Nutella Brownies
- Frozen Raspberry Brownies
- Terrys Chocolate Orange Brownies
Chocolate Shortbread
This recipe for Chocolate Shortbread is just delicious. With merely a few whizzes of the food processor you are ready to bake. The most simple chocolatey treat.
Ingredients
- 225 grams plain flour
- 50 grams cocoa powder
- 140 grams caster sugar
- 200 grams unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 C/ 350 F/ Gas Mark 4
- Put all the dry ingredients in a food processor and whizz to combine. Add the butter and whizz again until it starts to come together into a chocolate dough. Alternatively without a food processor you can mix the dry ingredients together before rubbing the (cold) butter in with your fingers or paddle attachment on your food mixer, until breadcrumbs form and finally kneading it into a dough.
- Empty out into an 8 " square ,or equivalent, lined loose bottomed tin and using a spoon gently press the dough evenly into the tin and smooth it off.
- Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes or until firm to the touch.
- Let the shortbread cool a little in the tin before marking out your slices. Wait until it is fully cool before moving to your serving plate and falling upon them.
- Apply To Face.
Notes
- You can make this recipe just as in the food processor in a free standing mixer using the paddle attachment or just in a mixing bowl. Simply use a wooden spoon to combine the ingredients. It is of course more time consuming than using the machines. Perhaps allow the butter to be softer and then chill the dough for 10 minutes before rolling out.
- I do wholeheartedly recommend a little independent oven thermometer. Oven temperatures can vary greatly even when your oven says it is at an accurate temperature. They are not always to be trusted. I want to say like men but I won't.....
- Watch the shortbread for the last five minutes in the oven to intervene if the top starts to burn. Turn the oven down a little or place a sheet of silver foil on top. If you use the silver foil you may need to bake for a little longer.
- You are looking for a firm top to the shortbread.
- The recipe is great for Chocolate Shortbread Cookies too.
- If the dough becomes difficult to handle/sticky when making Cookies then place the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.
- Store the Chocolate Shortbread in an air tight container and it will last well for up to 2 weeks.
- You can make this a gluten free recipe by using gluten free flour. However the texture may well be a little denser.
Nutrition
Calories: 363kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 53mg | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 131mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 625IU | Calcium: 18mg | Iron: 2.2mg
All nutritional information is approximate and intended only as a guide.
Tried this recipe?Take a pic and tag @applytofaceblog on Instagram. I would so love to see them!
Do let me know how you got on in the comments below or come on over and follow me on Facebook or Instagram. I love a good old hairy chin wag.
Louise says
Oooohh these will do very nicely thank you Mrs ?❤️
Monika Dabrowski says
Looks great Jenny and only 4 ingredients! My kind of dessert!
applytofaceblog says
And mine! So easy yet deeply chocolatey.
Jacqui Bellefontaine | Recipes Made Easy says
shortbread! Chocolate! Yes please !!! Thank you for linking to #CookBlogShare
applytofaceblog says
Absolute pleasure.I love this recipe.So quick and chocolatey!
Eb Gargano | Easy Peasy Foodie says
Oooh yes - I had forgotten all about chocolate shortbread. I haven't had it in years! I need to make some of this ASAP. I feel your pain re: summer holidays. I can take the bickering etc. but it was the ungratefulness that got me. We took them on an amazing holiday this year, yet they spent a good too much of the school hols moaning about all the things we hadn't done. Or they'd moan that they were bored despite the mountain of barely played with toys they begged us for. I may have threatened them with a plastic binbag on more than one occasion!! Eb x
applytofaceblog says
I so know how you feel.Nothing is ever enough is it. If I give them chocolate cake they want a biscuit, if we go out they want to be in. It's just all about the damn moaning......soul destroying!!!Bloody kids!
Candace says
Chocolate shortbread sounds divine! Going to have to give this recipe a go
applytofaceblog says
It's such a quick and easy recipe and absolutely delicious!Enjoy!
Clare says
This is exactly what I’ve been searching for! Your school break time sounds exactly the same as mine, only you forgot to say what a bunfight it was to grab said snacks, the chocolate was always my favourite and probably why I have a Bourbon biscuit addict x
applytofaceblog says
Thanks Clare, the good old days!
Barry Edges says
Made these this afternoon, winner winner 😁
Jenny says
Fabulous , thank you so much x
Sally J Edwards says
Made this recipe, came out lovely,my family will love these, certainly will make these again Thank-you
Jenny says
Oh brilliant! Thank you so much for letting me know and so glad you love them. It's such a simple recipe but soo good!x
Parvin Miah says
Hi love this recipe, how would i make this recipe into a vanilla shortbread recipe?
Jenny says
HI, thank you for that! This is my plain shortbread recipe. I make it into cookies but you could make it into triangles too. Let me know if you have anymore questions.
https://applytofaceblog.com/easy-shortbread-cookies/
Nicola says
I’ve tried this recipe twice now and it’s amazing!!
Second time I ran out of cocoa powder so used chocolate orange hot choc powder and some dark chocolate I had and tasted great also! Thanks for the recipe! Xx
Jenny says
Wow!!!What a brilliant idea! Flipping genius actually. I must have an experiment. Thank you so much for letting me know x
Edward says
Easy to make, tastes better than buying it, and only takes a few minutes!
Jenny says
Thank you!