Better late than Never...

I know this post is incredibly late, but it's better late than never!

One of my favorite cookies to make are cut out cookies. Why? Because it gives me a chance to create cookies of all shapes and there are sooooo many ways to decorate them. So is it surprising that I made heart shaped cut out cookies for Valentines Day? Absolutely not. It's definitely more time consuming than other cookies, but the end result is just fabulous.

For these cookies I just added some cocoa powder to a regular cut out cookie recipe and used white chocolate or royal frosting to decorate them. The chocolate cookie + white chocolate/royal frosting combo was  amazing :o)

Freshly baked and cooling on parchment paper 

Chocolate Heart Cookies Drizzled with royal frosting or dipped in white chocolate

Chocolate Cut Out Cookie (Variation of Alton Brown's recipe) 

3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon milk

1/2 cup cocoa powder

Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, cocoa powder and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar. Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill. Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time. Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or ice as desired. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.