Fudge Striped Shortbread Cookies

One thing that reminds me of childhood is summer. I remember my swimming pool- spinning in circles and staring up at the trees and leaves that hung high above, the branches gently arching over the water, and spinning until I fell over from dizziness. I remember watching the blues and greens swirl into a tie-dye of colors. I remember rushing outside to my sand box and playing on the swings. I remember learning that if I kicked off the old tree just right on my tire swing I didn't need someone to push me. I remember laying in my hammock and feeling at ease. The days would turn into nights, and I'd curl up on a lounge chair by the pool with a book, a blanket, and my cat. These were the best days of my childhood.  I long for my old house, and my old pool, and my old tire swing- and as I write this I am literally getting teary from the happy memories.

When I took these pictures for the blog, I was looking at the colors in the picture above and my memories from childhood hit me. The background in the above picture is the tree lining behind my house, but the way the sun and the leaves swirled took me back to a happy time and place in my life. I knew that even if the story didn't directly relate it needed to be told.

I don't know about you, but another fond memory of childhood is those Keebler Fudge Striped cookies, you know, the circle ones? I used to love to stick my finger through the hole and wear it like a ring, eating gently around the sides to see how close I could get before it broke. I was always a bit strange... But anyhoo, these cookies are so so so so so good. They are soft and delicate, the chocolate lightly contrasts the butter cookie. They aren't exactly like the round "ring" cookies of my childhood, but they are well worth the time to make them. They are lovely. As is childhood. And summer.

Is it June yet?

Source:  Eat, Live, Run

Ingredients:
2 sticks butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup good quality semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1- Preheat oven to 350.
2- Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the flour, salt, and vanilla until a dough forms.
3- Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for 30-60 minutes (I did 30 and mine spread to circles- I'd do 60 minutes if you want it to hold a more rectangular shape like the original linked above).
4- After chilling, roll dough into a log shape and slice into 1/2 inch cookies. Place on a lined cookie sheet and bake 20 minutes.
5- Cool completely.
6- Melt the semisweet chocolate. Pour the chocolate into a large zipper bag and cut off the edge. Gently drizzle the chocolate over the cookies. Cool completely and allow chocolate to harden.

Yields about 2 dozen cookies