Orange Chocolate Muscovado Shortbread

Considering that yours truly is a self-confessed chocoholic, it was inevitable that a chocolate recipe would show up on my blog. It comes at a time when we could all use some cheering up. My Orange Chocolate Muscovado Shortbread is bursting with chocolate flavour, in perfect combination with orange, vanilla, and caramel notes. The intense chocolate flavour comes from a generous dose of cocoa powder. It is complemented with orange zest, vanilla extract, and a combination of light and dark muscovado sugars. In order to add some interesting textural element to the crumbly melt-in-the-mouth shortbread, I added a little raw sugar to the dough for some crunch.

This shortbread is easy to prepare and involves the simple slice-and-bake method. If you are craving some homemade chocolate goodies, here is a simple no-fuss recipe to try.

Orange Chocolate Muscovado Shortbread

Makes around 35 - 40 cookies

Ingredients

230 g all-purpose flour

50 g cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

Zest of 1 orange

227 g unsalted butter, softened

40 g light muscovado

40 g dark muscovado

20 g raw sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

In a bowl, sift together the flour and cocoa powder.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the light muscovado, dark muscovado, orange zest, and salt to the butter. Cream together until fluffy. Add the raw sugar and the vanilla extract. Mix well.

Add the flour-cocoa powder mixture. Mix until incorporated.

Transfer half of the dough onto a large piece of cling film. Shape it into a 1-inch-diameter log. Repeat with the remaining dough. Refrigerate the logs for at least an hour.

Preheat the oven to 160°C. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Slice the logs into 1-cm-thick disks. Place them onto the parchment-lined baking sheets, 1-inch apart. Bake at 160°C for 18 minutes.

Cool on racks. Store in an airtight container.

These cookies will keep well at room temperature for at least a week.

I would love your feedback. If you try this recipe, please leave a comment in the Comments Section below or reach out to me on Instagram: @thelittlekatora.