Chocolate Fruitcake Shortbread Cookies 🎄 31 Days of Cookies

Where do you fall in the great fruit cake debate? Personally, I’m not sure a fan, although I do appreciate that it seems to have withstood the test of time. Maybe that’s due to the fact that many bakers infuse their fruit cakes with copious amounts of rum. It doesn’t feel right to have 31 Days of Cookies without some kind of a nod to the boozy cake. I opted for a chocolate shortbread, with melted semi-sweet chocolate chips, and that fruity confection we all know and love—hate?!?

Ingredients

⅔ cup butter
¾ cup sugar
1 ½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp heavy cream
1 tsp rum extract
½ cup cocoa powder
2 ¼ cups flour
1 ½ cups chocolate chips
1 cup holiday fruit cake mix

Directions

Preheat oven to 325° F. Combine butter and sugar and mix until creamy. Add rum extract, cocoa powder, heavy cream, salt, and flour. Coat a 9×11 baking pan with nonstick spray. Press chocolate shortbread dough into the pan. Then add a layer of chocolate chips, followed by a layer of fruit cake mix. Bake at 325° F for 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and use a spatula to spread melted chocolate chips evenly around the top if necessary. Top with fruit cake mix (optional). Cool and cut into squares.