Celiac-Safe Chocolate Chunk Shortbread Cookies Recipe

If you’ve checked your Instagram feed lately, you may have noticed social media’s latest obsession—chocolate chip shortbread from Alison Roman’s new cookbook Dining In: Highly Cookable Recipes. It’s part shortbread (hello, butter) and part chocolate chip cookie (hello chocolate chips and brown sugar). We couldn’t resist baking up a batch in our test kitchen, and in a Thrive Market twist, we used gluten-free flour so more of you can enjoy!

“Made with lots of salted butter (it has a slightly different flavor and a deeper saltiness than using just salt—I prefer unsalted butter everywhere else but here), the dough has just enough flour to hold it together and the right amount of light brown sugar to suggest a chocolate chip cookie. The chocolate is cut into chunks to prevent chip congregation, and once the dough is formed into a cylindrical log, the whole things gets rolled in Demerara sugar for the crispiest-ever edges.”

—Alison Roman, from Dining In: Highly Cookable Recipes

Salted Butter and Chocolate Chunk Shortbread

Yield: 24 cookies
Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours and 30 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (2 ¼ sticks) salted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups Pamela’s Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour
6 ounces Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks
1 large egg, beaten
Demerara sugar, for rolling
Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling

Instructions

Line a rimmed baking sheet (two, if you’ve got ‘em) with parchment paper. Using an electric mixer and a medium bowl or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, both sugars, and vanilla on medium-high till it’s super light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl and, with the mixer on low, slowly add the flour, followed by the chocolate chunks, and beat just to blend.

Divide the dough in half, placing each half on a large piece of plastic wrap. Fold the plastic over so that it covers the dough to protect your hands from getting all sticky. Using your hands (just like you’re playing with clay), form the dough into a log shape; rolling it on the counter will help you smooth it out, but don’t worry about getting it totally perfect. You can also do this using parchment paper, if you prefer, but I find using plastic wrap easier when it comes to shaping the log. Each half should form two logs 2 to 2 ¼ inches in diameter. Chill until totally firm, about 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush the outside of the logs with the beaten egg and roll them in the Demerara sugar (this is for those really delicious crispy edges). Slice each log into ½-inch-thick rounds, place them on the prepared baking sheet(s) about 1 inch apart (they won’t spread much), and sprinkle with flaky salt. Bake until the edges are just beginning to brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly before eating them all.

Recipe adapted from Dining In © 2018 by Alison Roman. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.