Cranberry Almond Bark Shortbread

The other night the hubster and I were FaceTime-ing it, and there was a total glitch in the matrix.

Somehow, for some reason, he could see and hear me perfectly, except my voice was all distorted. He was a-okay. I could hear him and see him, and all sounded as it should., but I sounded all wonky and mechanical.

He told me I sounded like a Dalek.

I proceeded to spend the next 15 minutes making my husband laugh so hard it was silent. You know what I’m talking about…that laugh that makes zero sound. You’re cracking up, but it’s like someone hit the ‘mute’ button…that’s how the hubster was laughing.

I couldn’t help it. The instant he told me that I sounded like a Dalek, I proceeded to claim that Daleks are the supreme beings and I needed to exterminate!

This is how I amuse myself.

I think the best part might have been when I ducked away from the screen and held one of my tiny Dalek dolls up instead.

Then, what’s that we hear? It’s only the TARDIS, i.e. my text sound, playing as I bring my phone into view, followed closely by the Doctor and his trusty sonic screwdriver.

Hubs thought I was weird when I said I wanted those dolls.

I know, we won’t discuss the fact that he called me weird, when he’s the one who isn’t a Whovian. Whatevs.

But I’m pretty sure that I proved the other night that they were worth every cent.

Also, I’m pretty sure I proved to him that I’m just as immature as he’s always suspected…

I know that’s part of my charm, so I’m not worried.

Just in case, though, I made him some cookies.

Shortbread, cause they’re his favorite. I dressed them up for the holidays, and all was merry and bright.

Then I went back to playing with my dolls and totally had Harry and the gang team up with the Doctor and Amy to defeat the Daleks and the Weeping Angels in an epic battle of wits and magic against terror and dry eyes.

Win.

As for the cookies, I started the recipe with a basic shortbread. It can be made on it’s own, and is excellent with hot tea or espresso, but I may never make plain shortbread again.

You can bake the shortbread in a shortbread pan, or you can make individual cookies, like I did in my original shortbread recipe. This time, I chose to shape all of the dough into one large rectangle, to make it easier to make the bark on top.

You don’t have to add the holes on top, but I’ve found that it helps the chocolate stick a little better. When it melts, it seeps a bit into the holes, helping them stick together. You can also skip the sugar on top…if you want…but, I mean…why?

When you remove the shortbread from the oven, turn the oven off right away, because you’ll use the warm oven again, but you don’t want it to be too hot. Immediately sprinkle chocolate chips over the top of the shortbread and allow them to sit for five minutes, then spread the melty chips over the shortbread. Sprinkle on dried cranberries and white chocolate, and place the cookies back in the oven for two minutes. When you remove them, allow to sit for three minutes before spreading the white chocolate. Finish up by sprinkling sliced almonds on top.

Once the chocolate sets up, chop the cookies up into chunks.

You can make this recipe with any bark that you like, but I love the cranberry-chocolate-almond flavors around the holidays. I think peppermint bark would be absolutely divine on this shortbread, and it’s also an excellent holiday flavor.

And, of course, you can simply make the bark on it’s own. It’s totally worth it….so yum!

When I first made these cookies (the batch in this photo, in fact), I only used half of the chocolate that I list in the recipe. It needs twice as much of the chocolate. It’s just perfection that way. I’ve made it both ways now, and it’s perfection with twice as much chocolate. Per. Fection.

Enjoy!

Cranberry Almond Bark Shortbread [Printable Version]

Ingredients

**If you’re able to find vegan chocolate and sugars, these cookies can be made vegan/dairy-free**

1 cup (2 sticks or 226 grams) unsalted butter or margarine, at room temperature
1/2 cup (113 grams) confectioners’ sugar (double check for gluten free)
2 1/4 cups (318 grams) all-purpose flour (can be replaced with Gluten Free flour)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar (for dusting)

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup white chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat the butter and confectioners’ sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the salt and flour and continue beating until everything is fully incorporated and the mixture resembles wet sand with large clumps.

Using your hands, press all of the crumbs together in the bowl until it all forms a cohesive dough. If the dough is too dry, add a little water, one teaspoon at a time, until the dough just sticks together.

Shape as desired and sprinkle with the sugar. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the edges are just turning golden brown.

Immediately turn off the oven (you will need to use the warm oven later.

As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, sprinkle the semi-sweet chips over the top evenly. Let stand for 5 minutes, then spread the chocolate evenly over the top.

Sprinkle the dried cranberries over the melted chocolate, then top with the white chocolate. Place the sheet in the still-warm oven for 2 minutes, then remove and allow to stand for another 3 to 5 minutes, until the white chocolate is shiny. Spread the white chocolate evenly over the cookies, being careful not to scrape the cranberries around. Sprinkle the top of the cookies with the sliced almonds.

Allow the chocolate to set before slicing. You can speed the process by chilling the cookies in the refrigerator or freezer. Slice cookies into 2- by 2-inch pieces before serving.

Recipe by Darla

Tagged as: Almond, Bark, Chocolate, Cookies, Cranberry, Cranberry Almond, Cranberry Almond Bark, Dairy Free, Gluten-free, Recipes, Shortbread, Vegan, White Chocolate