Neapolitan Checkerboard Cookies

Yield

60 cookies.

Ingredients

Base

• 1 ½ cup (336 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 ½ cup (300 g) granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs, yolks and whites separated, at room temperature
• 1 ½ tsp kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)

Vanilla

• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups (190 g) all-purpose flour

Strawberry

• 35 g freeze-dried strawberries (about 2 cups of slices)
• 1 ¼ cups (160 g) all-purpose flour

Chocolate

• 1 ¼ cups (160 g) all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup (25 g) cocoa powder

Steps

1. Prepare the shortbread base: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, combine butter, sugar, and salt on medium speed until pale yellow, about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides a few times. Add the egg yolks (reserve egg whites), and mix until combined, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then divide into three batches of dough.
2. Prepare the vanilla shortbread: To one third of the base, add vanilla extract and beat well. Add flour all at once and mix on low until it all resembles coarse pea-size crumbs. Transfer to a piece of plastic wrap and scrape the bowl and paddle clean. (No need to wash.)
3. Prepare strawberry shortbread: Pulse freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor until powdered (some crumbs are fine). You should have about ⅔ cup ground strawberries. To one third of the base, add the powdered strawberries and flour all at once and mix on low until it all resembles coarse pea-size crumbs. Transfer to a second piece of plastic wrap and scrape the bowl and paddle clean. (No need to wash.)
4. Prepare the chocolate shortbread: To one third of the base, add cocoa and flour all at once and mix on low until it all resembles coarse pea-size crumbs. Transfer to a third piece of plastic wrap.
5. With your hands, pat doughs into rough 5-by-10-inch rectangles and wrap them tightly in the plastic wrap. Using a rolling pin, roll the doughs so they are ½ inch tall. (If they’re larger than 5-by-10 inches, they can be trimmed to size later.)
6. To assemble, whisk the reserved egg whites with 1 tablespoon water to break up the whites. Trim any uneven edges from the dough (or if dough is larger, trim down to 5-by-10-inch rectangles).
7. Cut each dough into 9 (½-inch-wide, 10-inch-long) pieces. Once sliced, transfer strips to the fridge so they stay firm while you work.
8. To form the checkerboard pattern, lay a strip of each flavor on a cutting board (chocolate, strawberry, vanilla), brush with the egg white mixture and gently press the long sides together so they adhere. Layer another 3 strips (strawberry, vanilla, chocolate), repeat with egg white and pressing. Repeat with the last layer (vanilla, chocolate, strawberry). You should have a long 3-by-3 square. Repeat with the remaining dough strips until you have 3 logs. Wrap with plastic and transfer to the refrigerator to chill overnight.
9. When ready to bake, heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove one log at a time and square up any uneven edges, then slice the dough crosswise into ⅓-inch-thick squares.
10. Space the squares about 1 inch apart on the baking sheets and bake until the edges are lightly golden, 12 to 13 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Make-Ahead Notes

The cookies can be stored up to 1 week in an airtight container. The assembled dough logs can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months, then thawed in the refrigerator until ready to slice and bake.

Source

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1024781-neapolitan-checkerboard-cookies#notes_section