Looking for a shortbread cookie that snaps cleanly between your teeth, then gives way to a dark, silky ganache center? This isn’t a cookie hurriedly dipped in melted dark chocolate. Instead, you stack two layers of dough, cut out the top, and pipe in the still-warm ganache. They’re just as good with morning coffee as they are on a tray of petits fours for tea. This recipe joins my other gluten-free cookies.

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The dark chocolate ganache also makes up one of the layers in the 7-layer vegan opera cake.

What are these gluten-free, lactose-free ganache-filled shortbread cookies?

They’re gluten-free, lactose-free sandwich-style shortbread cookies with a cut-out top. The base is a solid round, the top is cut with a hole in the center, and that cavity is filled with dark chocolate ganache. The result is a neat, elegant cookie with a glossy center peeking through.

The idea comes from Bakefree: instead of dipping the cookies in chocolate, the filling is a ganache. And because you cut them with cookie cutters, you can play with shapes—rounds, hearts, flowers—as long as you keep the cut-out top.

The main ingredients

The gluten-free flour matters more than anything else. For a shortbread dough that holds its shape well, start with Schär gluten-free bread flour. Caputo gluten-free bread flour also works, but it contains “gluten-free wheat,” so it isn’t suitable if you can’t eat wheat-based products.

Salted vegan butter gives the dough its short, crumbly texture and structure. Flora+ is a safe bet, and Violife (the unsalted version) is the other most reliable option. Both are marketed as soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free, and lactose-free.

As for chocolate, a 70% dark chocolate such as Guanaja is the best choice for a bold, semi-sweet ganache. Pascha is another good option. The ganache itself contains no added sugar in this recipe, so leave it as is if you want something only lightly sweetened.

If you want to lean even further into the all-vegan, very low-sugar approach, replace the shortbread dough with a low-sugar vegan pie dough and keep the ganache the same.

Gluten-free citrus flan — Another gluten-free dough that needs to stay chilled: the one for the gluten-free citrus flan.

Technical notes and pitfalls to avoid

This recipe is written by weight, in metric, for consistent results. If you need to adapt it, use a unit converter rather than eyeballing with spoons: with shortbread, even a few grams can quickly change the texture.

Dough: mixing, chilling, thickness

Start by thoroughly mixing the dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the vegan butter and eggs, then mix on medium speed just until the dough comes together into a cohesive mass.

Shape into a ball, wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Once chilled, roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper to a thickness of 3 to 4 mm.

Layered cut-outs and chilling

The final shape of the cookies is decided at the cutting stage. Cut out the cookies with a cutter, then punch a hole in the center of half of them using a smaller cutter. Stack them in pairs, with the cut-out cookie on top, to create the cavity that will hold the ganache.

Before baking, chill them again: 15 minutes in the freezer or 1 hour in the refrigerator. This helps keep the edges crisp and clean.

Baking: color cues

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Bake the frozen cookies for 14 to 18 minutes, keeping an eye on the color: the edges should turn lightly golden. The exact time will vary with size and thickness, so watch the edges rather than relying solely on the timer.

Let them cool completely before filling, otherwise the ganache will melt and run.

Ganache: heating the cream and emulsifying

For the ganache, heat the cream over low to medium heat. Watch for the first signs of a simmer—the tiny bubbles that appear around the edge of the saucepan—then remove it from the heat immediately to prevent it from boiling.

Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let it sit for about 1 minute, untouched, so the chocolate can soften. Then blend with an immersion blender until smooth and glossy. If you don’t have one, stir gently with a spatula, starting in the center and working outward, until the ganache is evenly emulsified and shiny.

Keep the ganache warm so it stays pipeable. Transfer it to a piping bag, fill the cavity of each top cookie, then tap lightly to level the surface. Let it set for 10 minutes before serving.

Serve alongside coffee with 3-ingredient caramelized almonds.

You’ll find all my gluten-free recipes in that same section.

Recipe developed by chef Rommel Reyes. Explore his work on Instagram, his Substack newsletter, and his YouTube channel.