These delicious chocolaty cookies taste like brownie bites! So tasty they will become a tradition in your cookie baking throughout the year. Pair them with the Aunt Chick’s Cream Cheese Cutouts and add some cream cheese or chocolate frosting in the middle for decadent and easy to make sandwich cookies!

CREAM TOGETHER:

• 1 cup softened butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp bourbon vanilla

COMBINE IN SEPERATE BOWL

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 cup fine cocoa

Add mixtures together until well mixed and then split into 4 pieces. Refrigerate for 1 hour (up to 24 hours). Work piece by piece (leave dough in refrigerator when not using – the colder the better). Roll to 1/4″ thickness and use parchment paper above and below dough (this reduces the need for flour and leaves your cookies a rich chocolate color). Cut out cookies with Aunt Chick’s Cutters or silhouette cookie cutters. If using Aunt Chick’s Cookie Cutters it does help to refrigerate cookies before baking for 1 hour (if you have the time).

Bake at 400 degrees for 3-5min depending on the size of your cookies. Cool on a wire cooling rack. Once cooled decorate with icing if desired. BUTTER CREAM

FROSTING:

• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 6 large egg whites
• 1 pounds (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened and cut into pieces
• 1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Whisk sugar and egg whites in a large heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until sugar is dissolved and mixture registers 140 degrees.on an instant read thermometer, 2 to 3 minutes.

Fit an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, and beat the egg-white mixture on high speed until it holds stiff (but not dry) peaks and mixture is fluffy and cooled, about 10 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low, and add butter several tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition (meringue will deflate slightly as butter is added). Add vanilla, beat until frosting comes together, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat on the lowest speed until air bubbles diminish, about 2 minutes. Stir with a rubber spatula until frosting is smooth.

You can refrigerate the buttercream in an airtight container up to one week, or freeze it up to one month. Before using, bring it to room temperature and stir with a rubber spatula to smooth.