My preschooler has been very excited for “Love Day.” He has enthusiastically cut out and decorated many heart cookies with me. it is fun to have this kind of energy in generally, but it is especially helpful when trying many new recipes.
These cutie cookies are a breeze to make. They are my traditional shortbread cookie recipe dyed with beet water instead of red food dye. They are dusted with rose cardamom sugar essence and drizzled with chocolate.
I keep a jar of rose cardamom sugar essence on hand. It is easy to make up. Perhaps you don’t have edible rose petals on hand, just cardamom sugar essence would be very pleasant too. The chocolate drizzle is chocolate chips melted and mixed with a bit of oil for drizzling. I prefer coconut oil, but you could use whatever cooking oil you have on hand.
My little taste testers show their approval.
There was a bit of leftover chocolate. I threw together a few chocolates with with caramel sauce in the middle and topped with course sea salt. Yummy little surprises!
Buttery cookies dusted with a hint of sweet spice from rose cardamom essence and drizzled with chocolate.
17 minPrep Time
13 minCook Time
30 minTotal Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1 stick butter*
- 3 Tbs granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp beet water “red food dye”
- 1 1/8 cup all purpose flour
- 1 Tb granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp edible rose petals, finely chopped
- 1/8 tsp ground cardamom
- 3 oz baking chocolate chips*
- 1/2 Tb coconut oil, melted
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, cream the butter with the first 3 Tbs of granulated sugar. Blend in the vanilla extract and “red food dye”. Mix in all the flour just until dough forms. Press dough out flat. I put all my dough in a gallon ziplock storage bag. Working against the counter surface, I smoothed the dough out into a rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. Cover or wrap the dough and chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
- While dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 325F. Place the remaining lemon zest and the reserved 1 TB of sugar in a small bowl. Mix the ingredients together thoroughly.
- Once dough has chilled you can use a cookie cutter of your choice to make nice shapes. I used a cutter that was just under 2 inches and one that was about 2.5 inches.
- Place cookies 1-2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Sprinkle the sugar spice essence over the cut cookies before placing in the oven. Bake cookies for 10-15 minutes just until they set. Allow to brown lightly on the edges.
- Prepare the chocolate drizzle using a double boiler method. Fill a medium size saucepan a third of the way with water. Bring the water to a simmer. Place a stainless steel mixing bowl over the saucepan. Add in the chocolate chips and melted coconut oil. Stir just until melted. Remove from heat and drizzle directly over the cookies.
- Place the cookies in the freezer for 15-30 minutes to allow the chocolate to set. Cookies can be store in an airtight container on the counter for 1 week or the freezer for 1 month.
Notes
*Dairy free & soy free: replace the butter with a soy free vegan option. My favorite is Earth Balance soy free vegan buttery sticks. Replace the chocolate chips with Enjoy Life "Chocolate chips" they a re dairy, nut, soy, and gluten free.
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I am going to say it now. Sorry, if you are not a fan of Valentine’s Day. I urge you not to click out of this post if you do like cute heart things or the color pink. I can at least offer you that.
