Earl Grey Shorties

Plan Ahead: Dough needs to chill for 1 hour before cutting out rounds, and filling needs about 2 hours to set.

Make Dough

1. In bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream together butter, icing sugar, salt and tea leaves.
2. Add in flour and orange zest, and mix until just combined.
3. Lay 2 pieces of plastic wrap on countertop and divide dough between them. Wrap balls and flatten into discs. Refrigerate for 1 hour, or until firm but pliable.

Make Filling

1. In medium heatproof bowl, add chocolate. In small pot, add cream and bring just to a boil. Pour cream over chocolate and let sit for 2 minutes. Stir with rubber spatula until fully melted and uniform, then transfer to shallow container to set (this will take about 2 hours at room temperature).

Bake & Fill Cookies

1. Heat oven to 325°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Working with one disc at a time, roll out dough on lightly floured surface to about 3 mm thick and use a 5 cm round cookie cutter to cut out circles of dough. Return dough to fridge if necessary, making sure it’s cold at all times. Gather and re-roll scraps, as needed.
3. Bake cookies for 12 to 15 minutes, until edges are lightly golden. Do not overbake. Transfer cookies to rack to cool completely.
4. Spoon thickened filling into piping bag and pipe generous amount onto middle of one cookie. Place 4 to 5 pieces of candied orange rind in center and sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining cookies.