Mocha and Orange Sablé Icebox Cookies

 http://portandfin.com/mocha-orange-sable-icebox-cookies/

 Recipe type: Dessert

Author: Finn

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 10 mins

Total time: 40 mins

The dough for these Christmas cookies can be made ahead of time and frozen, giving you more time to rest and relax over the holiday season!

Ingredients

• Chocolate Espresso Dough:
• 1½ cups flour
• ½ Tbsp finely ground espresso beans
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup walnuts, chopped
• .
• Orange Sablé Dough:
• 1¼ cup whole blanched almonds
• 1 cup icing sugar
• ¾ cup butter, room temperature
• 3 Tbsp finely grated orange zest (~3 oranges)
• 1 large egg
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1½ cups flour
• 1 cup dried cranberries, chopped

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder and ground espresso. In a second bowl, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla until light and creamy- about 3-4 minutes. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Add 1 cup chopped walnuts and mix. Wrap in plastic and store in fridge.
2. For the orange sablé dough, place almonds and sugar in a food processor and process until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal or sand (hey! Sablé! That's the name of the cookie)  and set aside. In a large bowl, beat butter and zest together until light and fluffy- roughly 2-3 minutes. Add the almond mixture and mix until just combined. Add egg and lemon juice and mix to combine. Add flour and mix until just combined. Add cranberries and- you guessed it- mix until just combined. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate.
3. Bring the orange sablé dough to room temperature. Line an 8" inch square pan with plastic wrap. Press the orange dough into the bottom of the lined pan, smoothing the top as flat as possible. Cover with plastic and return the dough to the fridge for another hour.
4. Bring chocolate dough to room temperature. Remove plastic wrap from the top of your orange dough and press the chocolate layer overtop, smoothing the top as flat as possible and pressing it into the pan.
5. Cover the now layered doughs with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours or as long as overnight.
6. Remove the dough block from the pan-mould and remove the plastic wrap from the top and bottom. Cut dough into 2"x8" bricks. At this point you can wrap the 'bricks' up and freeze what you don't want to use right away or you can start this next step right away.
7. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice each brick log into ¼" inch thick slices and lay the slices on the parchment, at least ½" inch apart. Bake until firm, roughly 10-12 minutes. Cook on a wire rack with the dough-divide (between the chocolate and orange) laying perpendicular to the wires (I learned this one the hard way, when they're still warm and soft they can break right down the seam!)