Orange shortbread cookie sticks

100 g (½ cup) caster/superfine or granulated sugar
zest of 2 medium oranges (Ideally, use organic unwaxed oranges.)
130 g (1 stick + 1 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
260 g (2 cups + 2½ tbsp) plain gluten free flour blend (I used Doves Farm Freee plain gluten free flour that doesn't have any xanthan gum added. You can also mix your own gluten free flour blend using this recipe. Note that for this homemade blend, 1 cup = 150g, so ideally use a kitchen scale for best results.)
~~60 g (½ cup) cornstarch (US)/cornflour (UK)~~
~~½ tsp xanthan gum (Omit if your gluten free flour blend already contains xanthan gum.)~~
½ tsp salt
40 g (2½ tbsp) orange juice, freshly squeezed

(I used 260g flour)

Chocolate dip:

150 g (5½ oz) dark chocolate (60-70% cocoa solids), melted (Ideally, use tempered chocolate. See the Notes section for more details.)
1-2 tsp melted coconut oil (optional)

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