Valentine's Chocolate Chip Shortbread

Happy St. Valentine's Day!  Of all the stories that circulate about this day, the one I like is in connection to St. Valentine of Rome, who was imprisoned for marrying soldiers forbidden to marry and ministering to Christians, who were persecuted under the Roman Empire.  The story goes, while imprisoned, it is said he healed the daughter of his jailer, Asterius and before his execution, he signed a letter to her, "Your Valentine" as a farewell.  That's conviction!

Usually, I make sugar cookies and send them to my family, but this year, I have a trip to the UK in a few days for work and I've been knee deep die cutting, so a quick shortbread is what I came up with.  Tweaking my recipe for shortbread, this one proved to be quite good...and easy to make.

Valentine's Chocolate Chip Shortbread

2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup Confectioners' sugar (icing sugar)
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 T vanilla extract
4 1/2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour
1 bag Nestle's Mini Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 375F-degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugars together thoroughly, about 5 minutes.  This makes sure the crystals of the brown sugar dissolve into the "fat" of the butter.  As you will notice, there is no leavening or eggs used in this recipe.

Add the vanilla extract and cream to combine.  Add the flour and with the mixer on low (so you won't shoot flour out!).  When almost mixed, add the mini chips and beat to combine.

To form the hearts...I used a heart cookie cutter (about a 3-inch size, but your choice).  Using about a "ping-pong" size of dough, press into the mold.

Life the cookie cutter and repeat to fill the sheet.  These won't spread, but make sure they aren't touching.  Bake in the preheated oven about 9 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before transferring to a baking rack to cool completely.

They hold their heart shape and are crispy when cool.  You can leave them plain or get creative with a drizzle of chocolate over the hearts, write a message, or dust with confectioners' sugar.  I'll let you decide. Enjoy!