Chocolate Shortbread Footballs Food

CHOCOLATE SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Make the cookies: Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees F. Beat the butter, egg yolk, vanilla, salt and cloves in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to low; beat in the confectioners' sugar and cocoa powder until combined, then beat in the flour in two batches until combined.
• Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and dust with flour. Gently knead until soft but not sticky. Reflour the surface, if necessary, and roll out the dough until slightly thicker than 1/4 inch. Cut out shapes using 3-inch cookie cutters. Gently gather and reroll the scraps. (If the dough is too soft to work with, refrigerate until firm.) Arrange the cutouts about 2 inches apart on 2 unlined baking sheets.
• Bake, switching the pans halfway through, until the cookies are firm, about 20 minutes. Let cool 3 minutes on the pans, then transfer to racks to cool completely.
• Make the icing: Whisk the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and 1 tablespoon milk in a small bowl until smooth. Gradually stir in up to 1 more tablespoon milk until the icing is thick but pourable. Spoon the icing into a small resealable plastic bag and snip off a corner. Pipe the icing on the cookies, then sprinkle with sanding sugar. Let set, about 10 minutes.

FANTASY FOOTBALLS

Steps:

• Add something sweet to your Super Bowl menu, like these chocolate footballs! Just combine 4 cups crumbled chocolate cake with 1/4 cup frosting and shape into 2-inch footballs using damp hands (add more frosting if the mixture is too dry). Insert a lollipop stick into each. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes, then reshape to smooth out any imperfections. Dip in 8 ounces melted milk chocolate, place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate until set, 15 minutes. Draw laces and stripes with white frosting.

CHOCOLATE SHORTBREAD FOOTBALLS

Steps:

• Cream together the butter and sugar for 5 minutes. Add the cocoa and flour and mix together well until it combines. Allow to rest for 1 hour, covered in plastic.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• With a rolling pin, roll the dough to 1/4-inch thickness and with a cookie cutter shaped like a football, cut the dough into footballs. Place on parchment paper on cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Turn the sheet and bake another 5 minutes. Allow to cool.
• Mix together the mascarpone and 2 tablespoons of confectioners' sugar until well blended. Spread a little of this mixture on 1 football and top with a second football to make a sandwich. Continue spreading the mixture until all cookies are used.
• To make the royal icing, combine the 1 cup of confectioners' sugar with the egg white. Mix until the consistency is very smooth. Pour icing into a piping bag fitted with a round #1 tip. Pipe a football lace design on the cookies. Let dry.
• *RAW EGG WARNING
• Food Network Kitchens suggest caution in consuming raw and lightly-cooked eggs due to the slight risk of Salmonella or other food-borne illness. To reduce this risk, we recommend you use only fresh, properly-refrigerated, clean, grade A or AA eggs with intact shells, and avoid contact between the yolks or whites and the shell.

SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
• Roll the dough 1/2-inch thick and cut with a 3 by 1-inch finger-shaped cutter. Place the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.
• When the cookies are cool, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Put 3 ounces of the chocolate in a glass bowl and microwave on high power for 30 seconds. (Don't trust your microwave timer; time it with your watch.) Stir with a wooden spoon. Continue to heat and stir in 30-second increments until the chocolate is just melted. Add the remaining chocolate and allow it to sit at room temperature, stirring often, until it's completely smooth. Stir vigorously until the chocolate is smooth and slightly cooled; stirring makes it glossier.
• Drizzle 1/2 of each cookie with just enough chocolate to coat it.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE SHORTBREADS

Steps:

• Mix the butter and sugar together with a wooden spoon. Stir in the flour and cocoa, followed by the chocolate chips - you'll probably need to mix it together with your hands at this stage. Halve the dough and roll each piece into a log about 5cm thick. Wrap in cling film and chill for 1 hr or for several days. Can be frozen for up to 1 month.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Slice logs into 1cm-thick rounds, transfer to a baking tray lined with baking parchment and bake for 10-12 mins. Cool on the tray.

CHOCOLATE SHORTBREAD HEARTS

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder and salt.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in yolk, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Mix in flour mixture until just combined. Form dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
• Once chilled, remove plastic wrap and sandwich dough between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll it out into a 1/2-inch-thick slab. Leaving dough between the parchment, place it on a baking sheet or large plate and refrigerate for 30 minutes (or up to 24 hours).
• Heat oven to 325 degrees, and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Pull dough from refrigerator, and remove parchment from dough. Using a 2-inch heart-shaped cutter, cut out as many hearts as possible. Transfer them to the prepared cookie sheets. Reroll the dough scraps and repeat.
• Bake cookies for 18 to 23 minutes, until puffed and set, rotating the cookie sheets halfway through. Transfer pans to wire racks to cool completely.
• In a heatproof measuring cup, melt chocolate in the microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring in between.
• Dip half of each cooled cookie in melted chocolate, letting the excess drip back into measuring cup. Place back on parchment-lined baking sheets, and sprinkle chocolate with crushed raspberries, if using. Let cool until chocolate is set, then store in an airtight container.

CHOCOLATE SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. With an electric mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add flour, sugar, and cocoa; mix just until combined. (Chill dough in the refrigerator 10 minutes if it is too soft to handle.)
• Pat dough into an 8-inch round cake pan; press edges down with the tines of a floured fork. Bake until firm, 30 minutes. Immediately score into eight wedges; cool completely. Turn out of pan; break wedges apart. Decorate with icing.

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• In a small bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, sugar and cocoa; add to creamed mixture. Beat until dough holds together, about 3 minutes. , Pat into a 9x4-in. rectangle. Cut into 2x1-1/2-in. strips. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Prick with a fork. , Bake at 300° for 20-25 minutes or until set. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

CHOCOLATE SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
• In a mixing bowl, cream the butter, then add vanilla & mix well.
• In another bowl, whisk together flour, sugar & cocoa, then add to creamed mixture, beating about 3 minutes or until dough holds together.
• Pat the dough into a 9-inch by 4-inch rectangle, then cut into 2-inch by 1 1/2-inch strips.
• Place strips 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.
• Prick each strip several times with a fork.
• Bake 20-25 minutes or until set.
• Set sheets on wire rack(s) to cool for 5 minutes, then remove shortbreat to wire rack(s) to cool completely.

CHOCOLATE SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• Mix flour and cocoa powder together in a bowl.
• Beat butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sugar and vanilla extract; mix well. Mix in flour mixture gradually, 1/2 cup at a time, until incorporated; dough will resemble damp sand.
• Press dough firmly into a 9x13-inch baking pan. Cut into 1x2-inch rectangles. Prick each rectangle a few times lightly with a fork.
• Bake in the preheated oven until top looks dry and edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool before lifting out of the pan.