Updated: December 2020
It's time for Christmas cookies! These Dark Chocolate Sablés (Sah-bless) from Southern Living caught my eye earlier this year and I thought it would be a pretty cookie for the Christmas platters.
The photos were sprinkled with sea salt, but I like the look and crunch of the red, white and green nonpareils better.
Sablés are classic French cookies and are usually delicate and crumbly and, to be honest, can sometimes end up rather dry. These, though, end up wonderfully, deeply chocolate and even though they're still shortbread textured, they're not dry at all.
The addition of the finely chopped bittersweet chocolate to the dough and the final dip in the same melted chocolate really added that extra level of goodness.
These cookies are easy to put together and the only delay is waiting for them to freeze for thirty minutes.
I did discover a way to keep the cookies round. You know the way refrigerator cookies end up kind of oblong because when you refrigerate them the bottom of the dough flattens out?
If you take a paper towel tube (after the towels are gone of course) and cut it length-wise, you can slip the rolled dough into it before refrigerating. It keeps the dough nice and round for perfect cookies!
I love these little Dark Chocolate Sablés and found that you can freeze the dough for up to a month before baking.
They'll be a nice addition to the Christmas cookie plates!
Looking for more great Christmas cookie recipes?
- Cherry Ribbon Cookies (delicate and delicious!)
- Butterscotch Eggnog Stars
- Frosted Orange Cookies
Dark Chocolate Sablés
Terrific, deeply chocolate shortbread cookies with chunks of chocolate!
Ingredients
- 1 C salted butter, , softened
- 1 C powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 C all-purpose flour
- ⅓ C unsweetened cocoa
- ½ scant tsp. kosher salt
- 2 ½, 60 % cacao bittersweet chocolate baking bars, (they come in 4 oz. bars)
- Decorations for the dipped cookies, (sea salt, nonpareils, etc.)
Instructions
- Beat butter and sugar on medium speed until creamy. Add vanilla and beat until combined. Stir together flour, cocoa, and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, about a half-cup at a time and beat on low after each addition. Finely chop 1 of the 4 oz. chocolate baking bars and stir into the cookie dough until fully mixed in.
- Divide dough in half and shape each into an 8-inch-long log. Wrap each log tightly in plastic wrap and freeze until firm – about 30 minutes. (To keep cookies round, slip the dough into a paper towel tube that has been slit length-wise, then freeze.)
- Preheat oven to 350°. Cut the dough into about ¼-inch thick slices and place about an inch apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Keep remaining dough refrigerated while baking the batch. Bake for 11-12 minutes, until slightly firm. Cool on pans for about 5 minutes and then slide the cookies off to a rack to completely cool.
- Chop the remaining 1 ½ chocolate baking bars and place in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high, stirring every 20 seconds until chocolate is melted and smooth (about 1 ½ minutes total).
- Dip half of each baked cookie into the melted chocolate and place on waxed paper. Let the chocolate set for about 1 minute before decorating with sea salt, nonpareils or chopped nuts if desired. Chill in the refrigerator until the chocolate completely sets, about 20 minutes.
- To store, layer the cookies between waxed paper in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days.
Notes
Tips and Stuff :
Be sure and use kosher salt for the cookie dough. If you don't have any and are using table salt, only use a pinch or you'll end up with a very salty cookie!
I ended up using my hands to mix the chopped chocolate into the cookie dough, as it was very thick and hard to stir with a spoon.
Watch the melting chocolate carefully - if you microwave it too long, it will seize up.
If you're using sea salt for decoration, you may want to wait until the chocolate on the dipped cookie is firm. I found that it melted right into the chocolate when applied to it while warm.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 48 Serving Size: 1 cookieAmount Per Serving: Calories: 108Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 57mgCarbohydrates: 13gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 3g
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