Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

I think, perhaps, I need a 12-step program for shortbread cookies: I've featured Ginger Shortbread and Scottish Oatmeal Shortbread in recent weeks, and now I'm offering yet another variation on this simple but truly special treat!

I first made this recipe ages ago, and wrote about it for AnnArbor.com. All of my bubbes ([BUH-bee] = "grandmother" in Yiddish), the inspirational women in their 80s and 90s who have adopted me and taught me to play mah jong, cut it out of the print edition (AnnArbor.com is an online news source that also publishes hard copies on Thursdays and Sundays) and baked the cookies themselves. The friend whose apartment I'm staying at has raved about these treats, had her sons bake a batch for her, and even asked me to email the recipe on her behalf to a woman who was making up a cookbook for her daughter's Bat Mitzvah by collecting favorite recipes from loved ones.

And, most touching of all, when I walked into the kitchen to put away groceries on my first night here, I saw a handwritten copy of my recipe taped to the cupboard door; this had been copied down after the clipping had been lost. So, of course, I baked a batch to send to my friend as a woefully inadequate but still heartfelt "thanks" for her generosity in welcoming me to her home.

I'll warn you that the mixture is very dry and crumbly before it's baked; you'll wonder how this is ever going to meld together into a cookie, rather than something resembling graham cracker crumbs. Trust me. Look at the picture above to see how beautifully they turn out! They're rich, buttery, and utterly perfect with coffee, tea, milk, cocoa, or just on their own.

Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups flour
1/3 cup pecans, toasted and chopped (optional )

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease an 8"x8" baking pan.

In a large bowl, combine the butter, salt and sugar; stir in the cocoa powder and cinnamon. Stir in the flour and, if using, the pecans.

Using damp hands, press the mixture into the prepared pan and flatten it. Bake for 30 minutes until the edges are just turning golden.

Let the shortbread rest for 10 minutes, then use a sharp knife to trim the edges and cut into squares.

Makes 16 cookies.