Cherry-Chocolate Thumbprints

I made these cookies and found the dough to be very dry. I followed my instincts and added 2 Tbsp of melted butter while mixing which helped quite a bit. I read back through other shortbread and chocolate shortbread recipes and found that the flour is 2 cups even in the non-chocolate variety. The chocolate variety adds 3/4 cup of cocoa which is another dry ingredient. I believe that the proportions would be better as 1 and 1/2 cups of flour and 3/4 cup cocoa for the chocolate; I would leave the butter the same, one cup (2 sticks). I will make this again with the changes because it is a great basic recipe and the powdered sugar makes it awesome - the flavor was very good in the finished product, not too sweet at all.

I made these cookies today and they are quite good. However, mine do not look like the photo, although I followed the recipe exactly. Mine are not glossy, but more matte and likewise are fairly dry, like a chocolate shortbread cookie. As I was making them I had to double check because it occurred to me that the recipe does not call for an egg. I quite like shortbread, so I am not disappointed in the outcome. I baked them for 12 minutes, and I re-indented the middles with a synthetic wine cork just after taking them out of the oven, (since the thumbprints sort of popped up during baking). I would make them again.