As you guys know, I’m an advocate for putting bourbon in almost anything.

Especially this time of year. ‘Tis the season.

So when Four Roses reached out to me* about creating a holiday truffle recipe with bourbon, I was like — YES. Challenge accepted.

Chocolate and bourbon are a match made in heaven, but when it came to the concept of truffles, I wanted to try something different. So I looked to my girl Martha Stewart for inspiration. Low and behold, I found a recipe that layered truffles with shortbread. Done and done.

A splash of Four Roses here, a dash of Frontier Co-Op’s Simply Organic vanilla there, and voila — Bourbon Shortbread Truffle Squares.

(These make great gifts, but feel free to eat them all yourself — we won’t tell.)

Happy holidays.

Bourbon Shortbread Truffle Squares (makes approximately 48 squares)

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living

What you need:

(for the shortbread)

• 1 stick of unsalted butter, softened
• 1/3 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Frontier Co-Op’s Simply Organic vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour

(for the truffle)

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 pound bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 tablespoons Four Roses bourbon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

How you do it:

(for the shortbread)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 8″x8″ cake pan. Cover the bottom and both sides with parchment — butter parchment and set aside. (I actually used binder clips to help hold the parchment in place while I was buttering it — just remember to take them off prior to baking!)
2. Using a mixer, cream the butter and the brown sugar in a large bowl until well combined. Add the salt, Frontier Co-Op’s Simply Organic vanilla extract and flour, continuing to mix until blended. You’ll need to scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times.
3. Give the dough a few stirs with a spatula until it comes together to form a ball. Transfer the dough to the parchment-lined pan, being sure to press it down evenly so it covers the bottom. Use a fork to poke holes into the dough to prevent it from rising — 6 or so stabs will do.
4. Transfer pan to the oven and bake shortbread for 17 minutes or until slightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool complete before starting the truffle step.

(for the truffle)

1. Bring heavy cream to a slow boil in a medium sauce pan. Remove from heat and add chocolate, whisking to combine. Once chocolate has melted and mixture is smooth, add the Four Roses bourbon and salt. Stir once more to combine, then pour chocolate over cooled shortbread mixture.
2. Put bars in the fridge for at least 3 hours to cool.

(to cut)

1. Once cooled, use the parchment to remove the bars from the pan. Peel away parchment and set on a cutting board. Using a very sharp knife. begin cutting the shortbread into strips, and then into squares. I made mine smaller, which resulted in about 48 squares, but feel free to cut them as large as you’d like.

*Four Roses’ PR company reached out to me about partnering in a holiday truffle challenge and I chose to do it because I found it to be the right fit for Fresh and Foodie. Opinions are my own.