Swirl cookies

To prepare swirl cookies, start from the base dough: place the thoroughly chilled and diced butter in a mixer bowl 1. Add 2.5 cups of flour 2 and blend both ingredients in several short bursts to avoid heating the butter too much and to obtain a mixture with a sandy consistency 3.

Now place the dough in a bowl and add the powdered sugar 4 and the egg 5. Knead very fast by hand 6. This step is crucial so be sure not to heat the dough by kneading it for too long: you just need to make it a little firmer.

Once you have formed a uniform mixture (it will be soft) 7, weigh it, split it into two equal parts and place both pieces in separate bowls 8. Add the remaining flour to one bowl (6 tbsp) 9 and knead rapidly by hand until the flour is absorbed.

Add the cocoa to the other bowl 10 and knead this dough too, yet again fast and by hand 11. Once both shortcrust pastries are ready 12,

lightly flatten each piece, wrap separately in plastic wrap 13 and place them back in the refrigerator for a couple of hours (or until nice and firm). Once this time is up, roll both shortcrust pastries out into rectangles that are around 0.2 inches thick and 8.6x10 inches in size (14-15). You may find it easier to roll out each pastry by placing it in between two sheets of parchment paper.

Once rolled out, dab some water onto the white shortcrust pastry rectangle 16 and using a rolling pin, place the rectangle of cocoa shortcrust pastry over the plain piece 17, with all edges fully aligned. Delicately press down with the rolling pin 18 so that both shortcrust pastry rectangles adhere perfectly together.

Now dab some water over the entire cocoa dough surface and start rolling both layers of pastry together (19-20). Wrap the resulting roll 21 in plastic wrap and place it back in the refrigerator for around 30 minutes to firm up.

Now take the roll and cut it into slices that are around 0.3 inches thick 22. Place your swirl cookies on an oven tray lined with parchment paper 23 and bake in a static oven preheated to 320? for around 25 minutes (if you use a ventilated oven, bake a few cookies to test times and temperature for successive batches). When done 24, remove from the oven, leave to cool and enjoy your swirl cookies!