Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Total Time: 50 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted (preferably natural)
• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, grated
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cool and cut into small pieces
• 5 tablespoons vegetable shortening
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup sanding sugar or 1/2 cup coarse sugar, preferably clear, spread on a plate

Recipe

• 1 position the racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven; preheat oven to 375°.
• 2 whisk flour, cocoa powder, and grated chocolate in a bowl until uniform; set aside.
• 3 add butter and shortening in a big bowl; use an electric mixer on medium speed to soften them into a fairly soft mass.
• 4 add in sugar; beat until fluffy but still a little grainy, about 1 more minute.
• 5 beat in egg until smooth; then beat in milk and vanilla.
• 6 stop the beaters; add in the flour mixture, then beat at low speed just until a dry, rough dough forms.
• 7 dust a clean, dry work surface with the smallest sprinkling of flour, then turn the dough out onto it and knead it a few times, just until it coheres into a fairly smooth ball.
• 8 break of walnut-size pieces, roll them into balls between you palms; place them 2-inches apart on 2 nonstick baking sheets.
• 9 press the bottom of a medium drinking glass into the remaining unused dough, and then press the glass’s bottom into the sanding sugar.
• 10 use the bottom of the glass to flatten the cookies gently; pressing down to let the crystals adhere, until the cookies are about ½ inch thick.
• 11 repeat until all the balls are flattened and coated with sugar.
• 12 bake for 5 minutes, then reverse the sheets top to bottom and front to back.
• 13 continue baking for about 5 more minutes or until the cookies are dry at the edges and somewhat firm to touch.
• 14 cool on the sheet for 1 minute, then transfer to wore racks to cool completely.
• 15 ** chocolate almond sugar cookies: substitute grated chocolate for the semisweet chocolate; substitute almond extract for the vanilla extract.