I recently came across (and fell in love with) the Pastry Studio blog (http://pastrystudio.blogspot.com/).   I want to bake EVERYTHING that this pastry chef shares…..it all looks delicious!

I adapted this recipe from the ‘Chocolate Sparklers’ recipe that appears under the cookies category of this blog.  These cookies were a bit time-consuming…but definitely worth the effort.

Next time, I will try a different matcha powder with more depth.  Also, I LOVED the taste of the sesame seeds between the two flavors.  I also think that the seeds would be wonderful mixed into the matcha dough.

Chocolate Matcha Shortbread Cookies

Base Butter/Sugar Mixture

• 2 1/2 sticks butter @ room temperature
• 1/2 C sugar
• 1/4 t vanilla

Chocolate Flour Mixture

• 1 1/3 C flour
• 1/6 C unsweetened cocoa powder
• pinch of cinnamon
• pinch of salt

Matcha Flour Mixture

• 1 1/3 C flour
• 1/6 C matcha powder
• 1/4 C sesame seeds
• pinch of salt

1 large egg yolk

1/3 C sugar

Directions:

In a small bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon and salt together. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, matcha powder and salt together. Set aside.

Beat the butter on medium speed to soften. Gradually add sugar and continue mixing, until the mixture is smooth and creamy, but not airy. Add vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go to ensure thorough mixing.  Divide this butter mixture in half, leaving 1/2 in the mixer.

Turn down the speed to low and add the chocolate flour mixture, mixing just until ingredients are just about blended. Remove the bowl from the mixer and finish mixing with a rubber spatula to avoid over-mixing.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap.  Shape the chocolate dough into a flat, rectangular disk.  Refrigerate for 1-2 hours.

Clean the mixer bowl and paddle attachment.  Add the remaining 1/2 of the butter mixture in the bowl.  With speed on low, add the matcha flour mixture, mixing just until ingredients are just about blended. Remove the bowl from the mixer and finish mixing with a rubber spatula to avoid over-mixing.  Shape the dough into a log about 1 1/2” thick and 7 1/2” long. Wrap the logs in plastic and chill for 1 to 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silpats.

Whisk the egg yolk with one teaspoon of water. Place a piece of parchment or wax paper on a work surface. Spread out the 1/4 C sesame seeds on it.  Remove both the chocolate and matcha dough from the refrigerator.  Working with the match cookie log, unwrap and brush lightly with egg wash. Roll the dough log in the sesame seeds, pressing gently. Rewrap the log in plastic wrap, measure the circumference with a tape measure, and return the log to the refrigerator.

Roll the chocolate dough into a rectangular shape until the width is the same size as the circumference of the matcha log.  Also, pay attention to the length of the rectangle so that the chocolate covers the entire log but does not hang over very much.  The dough should be about 1/4 inches thick.

Again, remove the match log from the refrigerator.  Using plastic wrap, roll the chocolate dough around the match log.  See picture below.  Trim any chocolate that overlaps.

Again, roll the log in plastic wrap.  You want to make sure that the chocolate dough adheres to the match dough.  Press down slightly as you roll the log over again a few times.  Return the dough to the refrigerator for roughly 15 minutes.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator.  Roll the dough in sugar.  Use a sharp thin knife to slice the log into cookies about 1/2” thick. Bake for 15 – 18 minutes, rotating the pans front to back and top to bottom at the midway mark, until the cookies are just firm to the touch. Transfer to wire racks and cool completely.