With an intense chocolate flavor, these classic French cookies are crumbly, tender, and take shortbread to a whole new level.
The first time I tasted chocolate sable cookies, I wasn’t actually in France, but in Miette’s Bakery in San Francisco. It was love at first bite, and let me tell you why. I’m usually not dying over “regular” butter cookies because, although I find them nice next to my morning coffee, they don’t blow my mind. These cookies, though, are quite tender with an intense salty chocolate taste throughout. The flavor is a knock out!
Fast forward a few years and 30 cookies later (tasting them from more amazing places such as Balthazar and Pierre Herme), and I’ve finally made these cookies at home. My friend was asking me the other day why don’t I ever make butter cookies so she has something to snack on alongside the coffee, and every time someone asks me why I don’t ever make something, the next morning I will. Get what I mean?
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Sable means sandy in French, which is a perfect description of this cookie’s crumbly yet delicate texture. The less you work with the dough, the more tender and delicate the cookies will be. They are basically shortbread cookies with a deep, intense chocolate flavor – the absolute best part of this recipe. Not only is cocoa added, but also grated chocolate. These cookies are not too sweet. In fact, you can feel the saltiness in every bite, which enhances the chocolate’s bitterness and flavor. Good quality chocolate, about 70% cocoa, will work best here. Baked chocolate goods are all about the chocolate. I didn’t want to believe it for quite some time, being the simple girl that I am, but it honestly does make a difference.
These cookies are very simple to make. The only thing that takes some time here is grating the 100g of chocolate. As I’ve already mentioned, though, this what gives the cookies a unique chocolaty taste, so don’t despair; it really isn’t that bad at all. Still, if you’re really not up to it, there’s also the option of cutting the chocolate into very small pieces, like mini chocolate chips.
Now, a word about the salt: I won’t dive into why sea salt is better in this case than other varieties, such as table salt, but I will say that sea salt kind of has a “cleaner” and “sweeter” taste that better compliments baked goods. You can use either ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt, or ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt. You can also use ½ teaspoon of ‘fleur de sel’, which is a flaky sea salt that’s considered to be of high quality.
There are 2 options to shape the cookies. The first one is mentioned in the recipe: shape the dough into a log, refrigerate, then slice into rounds (imagine slicing bread). I find this process to be the easiest. The second option is to roll out the dough on a floured surface until it’s ½-inch thick, then cut the dough into squares using a knife (or use a cookie cutter to cut any shape you like). If you shape the cookies to a different size than what’s mentioned in the recipe, make sure to adjust the baking time accordingly. My cookies were about 1-1.5 inch in diameter and ½ inch thick, and they were ready in 10 minutes. If over baked, they will lose their tenderness.
This recipe is adapted mostly from Miette’s recipe, but also from Pierre Herme and Dorie Greenspan’s, the latter of which uses more butter and sugar and doesn’t grate the chocolate. They actually refer to these cookies as ‘world peace cookies’ and I can totally get why.
Chocolate Sable Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ⅛ cup (140 grams/5 ounces) all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup (30 grams/1 ounce) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup (1 stick/113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup (65 grams/2.3 ounces) granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
- ⅓ cup (65 grams/2.3 ounces) light brown sugar (or granulated sugar)
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt (see post for substitutions)
- ¾ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 ½ ounces/100 grams high-quality bittersweet chocolate , grated
Instructions
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In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, and baking soda. Set aside.
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In a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for 30 seconds until creamy. Add sugars, salt, and vanilla and beat for 2 more minutes until smooth.
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Add flour mixture and grated chocolate, and beat on low speed just until combined and the mixture is crumbly with large pieces of dough. Work the dough as little as possible, being careful not to over mix.
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On a lightly floured surface, work the dough until it comes together, then divide in half. Shape each half of dough into a log that is 1-1.5 inches in diameter. Wrap logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze (my preference) for at least 30 minutes. Dough can be left in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for 2 months.
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Preheat oven to 350℉/180℃. Line 2 pans with parchment paper.
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Once the dough is cold enough, use a very sharp knife to slice the log into ½-inch thick rounds. If the dough is too crumbly and breaks, leave it for a few minutes to soften or just squeeze any broken bits back into each cookie.
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Arrange cookies on prepared baking sheets, placing them 1-2 inches apart from each other. Sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar. Bake for 10-12 minutes. When done, the cookies should still appear quite soft, not firm. Allow cookies to cool on a wire rack.
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Serve cookies warm or at room temperature.
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Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Cookies can be frozen for up to 2 months.
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
i love a classic sable cookie.. these look delicious. definitely craving one right now!
Shiran says
Thanks Thalia 🙂
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
They look beautiful and melt-in-mouth!
Shiran says
Thanks Angie 🙂
cristina says
I’m going to need to make these chocolate sable cookies. They sound wonderful and look deliciously chocolaty!
Shiran says
Thanks cristina 🙂 They are so good!
Megan Rose says
Would this recipe work if you used gluten free flour instead?
Shiran says
Hi Megan! It really depends on the type of flour you’re using, but since I don’t have a lot of experience with gluten-free flour, I don’t know for sure. Sorry I couldn’t help!
Blithe says
What mode was your oven set to? Fan mode?
Shiran says
I use the upper and lower heating sources, I didn’t use the fan mode.
MJ says
This recipe is missing a crucial ingredient….some sort of binding agent, like say, an egg yolk?
Poorvee says
I’d love to know if anyone did try the recipe as stated and how it turned out? I don’t use eggs so i would like to know if I have to sub a binding ingredient.
Shiran says
This recipe doesn’t contain eggs, like shortbread cookies. So don’t worry 🙂
Ani says
I am here to say these cookies are soooo delicious. I just made them and I will add it to my repertoire. Whoever said it needs a binding agent… The butter IS the “binding” agent as well as the grated chocolate in there. It is the same concept as shortbread cookies and pie and tart crusts etc, none of which have eggs in there. All you have to do is follow the instructions of this recipe exactly and do not handle them when they are still warm, just wait until they are completely cool. I would not change the sugar content and I would definitely use bittersweet or bitter chocolate and a good quality cocoa powder. YUM! Thank you.
Jess says
How many biscuits does this recipe make?
Shiran says
About 30 cookies!
Camille says
I’m on my second cookie and it’s delicious! Definitely an intense chocolate taste and I love that, exactly what I was craving. Thank you!
Beth says
AMAZING!!!! beautifully chocolaty and tender! adding to my Christmas cookie box thx for the lovely recipe x
Na says
Do you use salted or unsalted butter ?
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Unsalted! Thanks for asking. I’ve updated the recipe to reflect this.
Katie Carlone says
Recipe looks fantastic! Before I try it, I have questions about grating the bittersweet chocolate – should the chocolate be room temperature? Can I use my Cuisinaty (pulse on/off mode)? microplane (which size?) or box grater (which size?).
Thank you so much! Katie
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Katie! Your bittersweet chocolate can be room temp. I use the small side of my box grater or microplane – whichever I can find first in my kitchen! The point of small pieces of chocolate is for easy incorporation throughout the dough. Any method you use to achieve this is just fine. The temperature from your hands can melt the chocolate, so hold it with parchment as a barrier or use your food processor if that’s easiest for you.