I’ll admit, I’m a bit tardy getting this recipe to you.  As apparent from the warm colors and Fall leaves on the background linen, I shot these photos pre-Thanksgiving.  Ignoring the seasonal feel of the photos, this recipe easily transitions right into a cookie perfect for the Winter holidays.  In fact, as far as I’m concerned, this is a year-round keeper.
I adapted this recipe from Country Living Magazine, taking the liberty of making a change that I feel definitely enhances this shortbread.  I added the flavor of orange.  I added two teaspoons of orange peel powder to the dough, and drizzled Lindt Excellence Intense Orange Dark chocolate over top of the cooled cookies.  During a recent trip to New York, my daughter took me to a marvelous spice shop.  I went a little crazy, scooping up armfuls of anything unique or unusual that I didn’t already have in my extensive spice cabinet.  (I collect spices like some women collect shoes.)  That spice shop is where I found the orange powder I used in this recipe.  Not to fret if you don’t have this ingredient, just add a teaspoon of grated orange peel in its place.
I’m not a calorie counter, nor do I focus on ‘healthy’ when it comes to the sweets I eat.  However,  I’m going out on a limb here and considering this a nutritious cookie since its main ingredient is whole wheat flour.  Maybe ‘nutritious’ is a bit of a stretch, but with that familiar crispy crunchy bite of shortbread, a helping of warm spice, and a hint of citrus, this shortbread cookie has it all going on.