The Not-Quite-Oreo-But-Still-Pretty-Awesome Cookies

Oreos.


Don't you just love them? In my quest to not feed my girls any ingredients I don't know, we decided to be brave and make it ourselves. I prowled the net and found a recipe on Food Network site but tweaked it a little, as I usually do.The verdict? Well........not quite Oreos but pretty damn good!

I also learnt that taking photos with the down light on is a big no-no - see above. Sorry I diverge, just needed to add that in.


These cookies are insanely chocolaty with a slight salty bitterness that contrasts beautifully with the sweet filling. Without the tongue twisting ingredients, the cookie texture was not quite the same as the real thing. The filling however tasted really close. I reduced the sugar in my recipe but feel free to up the sugar to get it closer to the real thing.

Here's possum stealing a cookie mid shot.

For the Dough:

• 1 1/3 cups Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 250g unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Filling:

• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 125g vegetable shortening
• 3 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Make 'em:

1. Sift together the cocoa powder, flour and salt in a large bowl.
2. Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla, incorporating each ingredient before adding the next. 
3. Add the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
4. Divide the dough into 2 pieces; place one piece between 2 lightly floured sheets of parchment paper and roll into a 1/4-inch-thick rectangle. If the dough is too sticky, place in the freezer for a 15 minutes so it's easier to handle. Repeat with the other piece of dough. Refrigerate both rectangles, covered with the parchment sheets, until firm, at least 1 hour.
5. Using a cookie cutter, cut the dough into your desired shape. I used a 2" frilled-edge cutter. Place the cookies about 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets and chill for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees.
6. Bake for about 20 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Cream the butter and shortening until light & fluffy. Add in the icing sugar and vanilla.
8. Flip half of the cookies upside down and top each with 1 level tablespoon of filling. Press the remaining cookies on top to make sandwiches. I got over 50 cookies for this recipe.