Chocolate Shortbread Heart Cookies
Updated March 03, 2020
Crisp and buttery Chocolate Shortbread Heart Cookies that get dipped in chocolate!
Now that the big game is over we can focus on Valentine’s Day. It is time to bust out the chocolate and get ready for the day of looooove! To be honest, Valentine’s Day isn’t my favorite holiday, but I will celebrate any holiday that gives me an excuse to eat chocolate.
Chocolate Shortbread Heart Cookies are the perfect Valentine’s Day treat. The cookies are chocolate AND they get dipped into melted chocolate. Double the chocolate, double the fun!
I love shortbread cookies because they are crisp and buttery! Bring on the butter!
I used Dutch processed cocoa powder to bring out the rich chocolate flavor. I also used our favorite flour, Gold Medal Flour’s Organic All-Purpose Flour. It is the best! And you want to use the best when you are making cookies for your loved ones!
I had to use my pink mixer to make Valentine cookies. So festive!
I rolled out the cookies and cut them into cute heart shapes!
When they were done baking, I dipped the hearts into melted chocolate and sprinkled colorful Valentine’s sprinkles over the chocolate before it hardened.
I had chocolate and sprinkles all over the kitchen, but it was SO worth it. Look at how cute these cookies are!
You know what’s even cuter than the cookies? Our little pea, Caleb! He couldn’t wait to taste a cookie!
He was yelling, “CHOCOLATE!”
Chocolate face and hands…Caleb approved! He is my special Valentine and the cutest taste tester ever! Baking is so much more fun when you can share with your loved ones.
If you are looking for a special treat to make your special Valentine, make Chocolate Shortbread Heart Cookies. They are sure to make your sweetie’s heart go pitter patter!
Chocolate Shortbread Heart Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips melted
- Sprinkles for decorating
Instructions
- Sift the flour, cocoa and salt together. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in the vanilla extract. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until combined. Between two sheets of waxed paper, roll the dough 1/4-inch thick as evenly as possible.
- Chill for 30 minutes.
- Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with a Silpat baking mat or parchment paper. Cut out the cookies with a heart shaped or other cookie cutter. Arrange the cookies, on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the cookies for 15 minutes, or until crisp and firm. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for two minutes and then transfer to a wire
- cooling rack to cool completely.
- When the cookies are cool dip the hearts into the melted chocolate. I only dipped about ¼ of the heart. Sprinkle the chocolate section with sprinkles, if desired. Place the heart cookies on wax paper until the chocolate is completely set up.
- Note-you can use any type of cookie cutter and sprinkles. You can make these cookies for any and every holiday!
Have you tried this recipe?
Leave a comment below and share a photo on Instagram. Tag @twopeasandpod and hashtag it with #twopeasandtheirpod
Disclosure-this post is in partnership with Gold Medal Flour, all opinions are our own.
There is SO MUCH CUTE in this post! First, your pink mixer and then Caleb! So adorable!
Plus, these cookies are super cute as well. I love shortbread and chocolate…so these.
These are so pretty! And Caleb’s face is just priceless. 🙂
I tried making something similar this weekend but wasn’t happy with how they turned out. Yours look so perfect and pretty! I will definitely have to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing!
These are too pretty! And Caleb, oh my, is just cute as a button!!!!
These are sooooo pretty! And that little man gobbling them up? Couldn’t be cuter!
There is too much cuteness in this post!! The cookies and your little man… so cute!
Caleb is such a doll — wish I could come share some of these cookies with him!!
These are awesome for V-Day! Great shots!
These are too cute! Little Caleb is adorable enjoying those cookies!! xo
What a cutie your Caleb! He’s so lucky to have you making these fun cookies for Valentine’s Day!
I think that even people in relationships aren’t crazy about Valentines day. But you get to make fun food and eat discount candy, so that’s awesome.
Chocolate shortbread is one of my favorites. I can fill myself up and still want more.
These are seriously so cute and perfect for Valentine’s Day! Caleb is adorable!!
These are adorable, and, even more adorable is your little guy taking down a cookie.
These look delicious! Such a sweet little treat for V-Day! Caleb looks like he is DEFINITELY enjoying them! 🙂
These are totally adorable- so is Caleb by the way!
Caleb is such a cutie! The cookies are just adorable!
I love those pics of Caleb! The cookies are of course awesome!
Very cute pics of Caleb!!! Love the cookies 🙂
Does it have to be Dutch processed cocoa for this recipe?
No, you can use regular cocoa.
Seriously, Caleb is so flipping cute!! Adorable. And I <3 these cookies!
These look so cute! I love dipped cookies, I think they look just as nice as frosted, and they take SO much less time!
What a cute post! My sugar level is in a very high level right now, I don´t know if it’s because of the cookies of because of Caleb 😉
These look great, and your son is adorable! I have some Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder in the house, so I’m going to try these cookies over the weekend using that. Thanks!
Oh come on, how cute are those! and you mix them with Caleb and it’s cuteness overload! 😀
Love all the pics of Caleb! I don’t blame him for digging right in!
Looks like we both had shortbread heart cookies on our minds! Sprinkles and all! lol Love cute cookies that are always a hit with the kiddos!
Oh wow these look delicious and fabulous! 🙂 Love the pics 🙂
These cookies are adorable! They sound yummy, too. PINNED!
Thank you!
What size cookie cutter did you use in the picture?
It is about a 2-inch heart.
Aww…my favorite photos are of sweet Caleb all messy from enjoying his chocolate-dipped cookies! 🙂 As always, Maria…gorgeous photography and another fun holiday recipe! xo
These really are just that cute!
I always love your cookie recipes that I make, and I rarely say thank you! One question–I am having a hard time this past year finding Dutch process cocoa. I used to get it in the bulk bin at the Coop. Now the bin doesn’t say it is Dutch process, and I’ve looked all over and can’t find cocoa that says it is Dutch processed elsewhere. I went back to the Coop and asked, and a kind employee went in the back and looked in the “mother lode” box, and it said Ghirardelli. I contacted Ghirardelli, and they said some of their bulk is and some isn’t. . . . Any ideas where to find not-outrageously-priced Dutch process cocoa?
I buy mine from a local store, but they have an online shop. Here is the link: http://www.gygi.com/callebaut-royal-dutch-cocoa-powder-5.html
These are just WAY too pretty!!!
These cookies look delicious! Your son is so cute!
simple beauty….plus yum! A winning combination. I can’t wait to try them.
These are perfect for Valentine’s Day, I might have to make my husband a batch! Love the sprinkles!
i love these cookies!!! I’ll take a dozen!!! yum and happy Vday!
I love how you dipped the shortbread in chocolate, extra chocolate is a good thing!
That is right, Heart Day is on its way!!!
they’re pretty!
need to make for a gluten free friend – what do you suggest as flour substitution?
These look wonderful! Do you think I could omit the cocoa powder completely to make jus a regular shortbread cookie?
Did I miss something? I have a crumbly mess all over my kitchen, not anything resembling dough. Help!
I just made these cookies, and frosted them instead of dipping in melted chocolate. I’m glad I used frosting because the cookies were not extremely sweet. They were also crumbly. They will be eaten, but I’m not sure I’ll make them again.
Hi there! I’m the one who put the icing chocolate IN the shortbread mixture on twitter 🙂 I have a question for you, how do you keep your heart so sharp and precisely cut out, even after they’re cooked ? Mine are not this precise and sharp … I tried putting the pre-cut heart in the freezer juste before putting them in the oven, but no luck… Anyway, thanks for an awesome BLOG you have 😀
Can we use normal chocolate bar instead of choc chips for the melted choc? Thanks!
Yes!
Can I make the dough a day ahead and let it chill in the fridge until I’m ready to roll?
Yes!
Caleb certainly looked like he enjoyed these lovely cookies! Although following this recipe to a T, it just was not coming together at all! It would not stay together between pieces of wax/parchment in order for me to roll it out. I then realized there is no egg in this recipe…so I added one, and it really helped! Also, even after chilling it for 30+ minutes, baking them for 18-20 min, was just way too long! I ended up burning my first batch after they were in the oven for 10 minutes. So 7-8 minutes worked perfectly for the rest of the cookies. I made these lovelies this morning and the aroma in my house was absolutely amazing!
There isn’t an egg in the recipe. Shortbread recipes usually don’t have eggs. We’ve made these cookies several times and never had a problem! Sorry you had troubles!
These are the loveliest cookies I’ve ever seen!! How perfect for Valentine’s Day 🙂
The batter turned out as dry as a bone. I followed the recipe to a “t”. Only using regular GM Flour instead of Organic….is this recipe missing an egg?
No, the recipe doesn’t have an egg. Shortbread cookies don’t have eggs. Our dough wasn’t dry at all and we’ve made this recipe at least 5 times. Sorry you had problems!
Can you make these plain shortbread? Just by omitting the cocoa?
I haven’t tried this recipe with omitting the cocoa. Sorry!
What’s the best way to store these? 🙂
In an air-tight container on the counter.
Do you think I can make the dough a day ahead of time and let it hang out in the fridge?
Yes, for sure!
I’m sorry, I dont know why it posted again! that was my mistake!!!
You can tell how eager i am to make these!!!
made these today for valentine’s day and added a little espresso to the mix. they were wonderful! Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
These cookies look absolutely beautiful. I’m crazy for shortbread, so combining them with chocolate can only be a win. I hope I can make them work in my arm Hawaiian kitchen.
These made a great chocolate treat for my two pregnant sisters! I made them when my oldest sister found out she was having a boy, and put blue sprinkles on them for her. Thanks for sharing this delicious recipe.
I tried making these cookies for Valentine’s Day and they were delicious! Just the right amount of sweet and perfect texture. Thanks for a great recipe! 🙂
Excellent recipe! I tripled it to turn out several dozen for teacher gifts. The end result is perfect, light and crunchy. I’ll dip and sprinkle tomorrow with my son. Thank you!
These turned out fantastic. Thank you for another fabulous recipe.
You are welcome!
Is there an alternate way to make the cookies with salted butter? I only have salted in the house and would like to avoid a trip to the store as i have all the other ingredients at home.
Epic Fail for me. I do not have a stand mixer and tried a hand mixer….. 1st attempt with White Rice Flour – didn’t turn out, so I thought it might be the flour so I tried regular…. still appear like crumbs instead of actual dough!! I have no idea what I could have done different
Can it be done without a stand mixer?
I also followed the recipe to a t and came out with crumbly dry sandy dough. I tried putting it together and it wouldn’t stay. What am doing wrong?
You did nothing wrong. It’s the recipe. I am not a novice baker, and I had the same problem.
I made this dough and it turned out crumbly and dry at first. Almost giving up I took the advice of my sister and added more butter and worked it in with my hands. That seemed to do the trick. Was able to roll out and chill the dough beautifully!. They came out great! Thanks!
Did this idea today and it was easy and awesome. Thanks for the creative idea.
these are sooooo good! made them for my daughter’s second grade class for valentines day. thank you!
I got a laugh you use organic flour yet red and pink sprinkles with red dye is used.
These are so super cute, and look delicious!
http://www.chadesofchic.com
xx
These cookies are positively delicious! I took these to a Valentine’s Day party and since then I have been asked to make them again and again. Thanks for posting the recipe. And the pictures of your son, so cute!
Thank you for the recipe! I made these cookies today and they turned out great, very delicious and my house smells heavenly. I wrote about the cookies on my blog http://www.paisleyfarm.blogspot.com
Sofia
Is the cocoa powder sweetened?
Is the cocoa sweetened??
no
Cute cookies and cute little guy eating them! Happy Valentine’s Day!
I’ve made these cookies twice, following the recipe exactly. Delicious! I’ve never experienced such crumbly dough though, with any cookie, ever! I honestly thought I must have misread the butter measurement. It came together when rolled but it was tedious. Any thoughts?
Dont these have eggs
I made the for my son’s kindergarten class valentines party. I did find the dough a little dry, but once I started working with it, things came together nicely. They aren’t too sweet and the kids love the sprinkles!
I hate to say it, but I was not impressed with this recipe at all. These cookies were blah, I normally love shortbread, too. I would not make these again.
I’m sorry, but I was not impressed with this recipe at all. These cookies were blah. I was going to take them over to someone’s house, but I choose not to. I will not make these again.
Just wondering…..I tried your recipe, but the dough turned out very, very dry and crumbly. I followed the directions exactly, so not sure where I went wrong. After I added the flour mixture, the dough was the texture of breadcrumbs. I tried to pack it together ad then rolled it and chilled it. But after chilling, the dough was still crumbly. The cookies didn’t turn out…what could have caused this? Thanks for your input. the cookies were delicious, but just didn’t look pretty. Thank you!
Made these cookies for Valentine’s Day. Rave reviews from my husband’s co-workers. Not too sweet but nice and chocolatey.
Glad you liked them! Happy Valentine’s Day!
I made these and they were super duper delicious!! My husband loved them! The only thing is the dough was a bit tricky to roll out, even after chilling, it was hard to keep it together. It is possible I didn’t add quite enough butter, and since they were so good, I’ll just have to try again I think 😉
These look great.
Can I have the recipe?
Thanks for sharing the recipe, I really like and would love to try it. 5 stars for this recipe because I like it <3
These look adorable and your photos are great! Unfortunately they were very dry and flavorless. Follwed as directed.
Awesome idea! So yummy! Thanks for sharing. My first time on your blog
First of all, yes, the cuteness in this post is overflowing!
But after reading a zillion comments, I never found one where someone actually made the cookies. My 2 year old daughter and I made them yesterday for Valentine’s day, and I read the recipe at least 20 times because that dough was not a dough at all! After researching other recipes for chocolate shortbread, I realized that this one was missing eggs. I added 2 eggs and BAM…I got dough!
Short breads cookies are traditionally made without eggs. They’re pretty much butter, sugar, flour, and flavoring.
Thank you for sharing delicious recipes I love it so much and will soon try at home ..
Made these last year. They were great. I can’t wait to make them again this year!
They are becoming a tradition. We definitely dipped ours a little further in the chocolate than suggested. Unnecessary but so good. 🙂
Has anyone made the dough the day before?
I make these cookies year round. Stars at Christmas, hearts for Valentine’s Day, other shapes, too. I follow the recipe exactly and have never had any trouble rolling them out. I put a bit more salt in them than the recipe calls for. It seems to bring out the flavor. Everyone loves them because they are rich, but not too sweet.
I made these cookies today. I’m not sure why so many people were commenting about the dough. These are shortbread cookies. The dough is exactly what it should be. I followed the directions exactly and I’m very happy with the results. I can’t wait to dip them and get some festive sprinkles on them!
I made these just as is and the flavor was great! I didn’t find the texture of the dough to be crumbly. Maybe others didn’t add enough butter, or the butter wasn’t soft enough when they started. I know some people added an egg, but if you do that then it isn’t shortbread anymore!
I do have two issues, though:
This does NOT make 3 dozen cookies. Even the picture above, after the cookies are cut out, only show about 15 total. I got about 13, and that was using every bit of it. I think that using a smaller cookie cutter would be good anyway, since shortbread is pretty rich.
Second, the chocolate didn’t get smooth enough to really dip – seemed I heated it up as much as I could, so not sure what the issue was. Think I might want to try heating chocolate and shortening, or make icing, next time.
Other than those things, I LOVED these cookies and will make them again soon!
My first time to make chocolate shortbread and I’m sold! You have to work fast to keep the dough cold! It’s delicious!
I was excited to try this recipe, but the dough was extremely difficult to roll, it was mostly floury crumbles. I would also add less cocoa and more sugar.
Love this recipe. I followed the instructions, not one issue. I even used a little bit of extra dark cocoa in the dough. No eggs needed adding at all. Just make sure the butter is at room,(very important),temperature and it will all bind together. Amount of cookies depends on the size of the cutter one uses and how thin you roll the dough.
I made these cookies and they are just ok. I think the ratio of cocoa powder to sugar is not to my liking, as they tasted too bitter. The dough was very hard to work with as well.
Follow the recipe and you will have some amazingly rich chocolate shortbread! Thanks for some amazing cookies.
I just made these and I would say they are, or could be, pretty good. My one negative is I think they were just a tad bit dry – likely too much flour. It could be because it is by cups not grams, so my flour ended up being heavier than yours etc. Maybe I, or someone else trying this recipe, would cut the flour back just a tad (i.e. 2-4 tablespoons). However, I would agree with another review saying they are not too sweet which is great! Mild chocolate flavor but with a dip or a drizzle, they are perfect.
I have never tried chocolate shortbread before, so these were a little too rich for me. BUT, this is a very easy dough to handle, holds it shape well, and I didnt chill the dough before rolling it out. I just floured my surface, cut them out, and put them in the freezer for about twenty minutes before popping them in the oven. They baked up perfect in 12-15 minutes using a 2 inch cutter. They turned kinda cute! I used good quality white chocolate. I found dipping to be a pain, as they stuck to the cooling rack. So, I just piped on the chocolate and put the sprinkles on right away. Good recipe! I bake over 600 cutouts a year, this is a good one to keep in your rotation when you want something more indulgant!!! PS, weigh your ingredients…that way your dough is not crumbly!!!