Chocolate Chip Shortbread Sandwich Cookies

This recipe is one of my favorite chocolate chip recipes. It's a shortbread recipe that includes mini chocolate chips. It does not take the place, in my mind, of a regular chocolate chip cookie. It fulfills a different need. The texture is light, crunchy but not quite a melt-away texture. There is actually a touch of coconut extract in these cookies along with a big splash of vanilla. The coconut adds a different dimension but is not noticable as coconut. I've made this shortbread recipe many times and usually I just take a big scoop of dough and plop it on the cookie sheet, flatten it a bit and bake. Sometimes I roll the chilled dough into a ball and bake. Another way I've done it is roll out the dough and cut it with a round cutter. This time I wanted them to be a bit fancier because I wanted to make sandwich cookies with them so I piped them with a piping bag. The dough was a bit stiff but wasn't too bad squeezing it out onto the cookie sheet. The dough held it's shape nicely, even after baking. After the cookies cooled, I piped some chocolate frosting onto one cookie and sandwiched another on top. I think they look adorable! I don't know why but I'm somewhat fascinated with sandwich cookies - especially homemade ones. They look so time consuming and complicated but they aren't. And of course they are wonderfully delicious. I found the shortbread recipe on allrecipes.com.

These cookies hardly spread at all during baking so I was able to pipe many onto one cookie sheet.

Look at how well the cookie held it's shape after baking!

Wonderful texture! They wouldn't be the same with regular size chips. The mini chips are necessary, I think.

Betty Crocker canned frosting!!!??????? Gasp! The horror! I kind of can't believe I used it either but it was getting late and it was sitting there........it's not so bad. But I do wish I would have taken 15 minutes and made my own - mostly because this frosting doesn't really crust or set up so my sandwich cookies keep sliding apart because the frosting is slick. They taste good though!

Maybe I should have piped a smaller blob of cookie dough because these are not quite pop in your mouth size. They are a slight bit bigger. They are kind of difficult to bite into with the slick frosting in between.

These cookies are great and cute as sandwich cookies but they are wonderful as just plain cookies also. Try them! They are easy to make.

Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies
From allrecipes.com

2 cups softened butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large bowl, cream together butter & 2 cups powdered sugar. Beat in the vanilla and coconut extract and salt. Add flour and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips.

Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Flatten with fork dipped in powdered sugar.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until edges are a light golden brown. Cool on wire rack.