Classic Snacks Made from Scratch (3 page)

Using a donut cutter or round 2-1/2 and 1-inch cookie cutters, stamp out the cookies. Carefully transfer the rounds to the prepared baking sheets. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the cookies are puffy and golden brown at the edges. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

ADD THE CHOCOLATE COATING:

When all the cookies are completely cooled, line a baking sheet with waxed paper.

Melt the chocolates and heavy cream together in a small, wide saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until the mixture is smooth and lump-free. Dip the bottom of each cookie in the melted chocolate to coat, then place on the waxed paper chocolate-side down.

Scrape the remaining chocolate mixture into a pastry bag or a small zip-top bag fitted with a small round piping tip (see How to Fill a Pastry Bag,
page 187
). Draw 3 or 4 lines of chocolate on the uncoated side of each cookie. Let the cookies sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to allow the chocolate to harden.

The cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

Drumroll, please. It’s hard to mess with the perfection of an Oreo, the most popular cookie in America—but that hasn’t stopped high-end chefs and home bakers alike from trying. This cookie takes a step away from softer homemade versions for an authentic cookie crunch and firm, sugary center.

Dunk ’em in milk, twist the layers apart and nibble the cream, or eat in one or maybe two big bites—all the classic eating methods apply. Want a Double Stuf Oreo? Just make twice the amount of filling and load up.

YIELD:
3 dozen filled cookies

TOTAL TIME:
2 hours, including dough chilling time

DIFFICULTY:
3

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT:
stand mixer, 1-1/2-inch round cookie or biscuit cutter

COOKIES

3 cups (12-3/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 cup (1-1/2 ounces) unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon baked soda (see
page 12
)

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (a scant 1/3 cup)

8 tablespoons (4 ounces) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 cup (3-1/4 ounces) vegetable shortening

1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar

2 large eggs

FILLING

2-1/2 cups (10 ounces) powdered sugar

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

2 tablespoons whole or reduced-fat milk

1 tablespoon vegetable shortening

MAKE THE COOKIES:

Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baked soda, baking powder, and salt together into a large bowl until no lumps remain.

Melt the chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, or microwave at 15-second intervals, stirring between each burst, until liquefied. Set aside to cool slightly.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter,
shortening, and sugar on medium speed for 3 to 4 minutes, until light, fluffy, and creamy. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly before adding the next. Pour in the melted chocolate and mix until just combined.

Add the dry ingredients and mix until a soft dough forms. Shape into 2 discs of roughly equal size and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, until firm.

Preheat the oven to 375°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat liners.

On a floured work surface, roll one of the dough discs to 1/4-inch thickness and stamp out cookie rounds, using a 1-1/2-inch cookie or biscuit cutter. Transfer the rounds to the prepared baking sheet and repeat with the remaining disc of dough.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly crispy at the edges and puffed but still pliable in the center. Cool completely on a wire rack before filling.

FILL THE COOKIES:

Using the stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the powdered sugar, corn syrup, milk, and shortening on low speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 30 more seconds to whip slightly.

With the flat side of a cooled cookie facing up, spoon 1 teaspoon filling onto the center. Top with a second cookie, flat side down, spreading the filling evenly. Repeat to fill all the cookies.

Store the cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week.

Mallomars are famous—or possibly infamous—for being a seasonal cookie, only available from September through March. Though the sales schedule seems anachronistic in these refrigerated times, the first crunch through a Mallomar’s pure chocolate coating into a soft marshmallow-and-shortbread center is cause for celebration in New York and New Jersey (where more than 70 percent of Mallomars are sold, according to Nabisco). Missing your Mallomars in August? Just make them at home.

YIELD:
2-1/2 to 3 dozen cookies

TOTAL TIME:
4 hours, including chilling and resting time

DIFFICULTY:
5

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT:
stand mixer, candy/oil and digital thermometers, pastry bag (or zip-top bag) with large round piping tip

COOKIE

1 cup (4-1/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

1/4 cup (1 ounce) white whole wheat flour

1 pinch kosher salt

8 tablespoons (4 ounces) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/4 cup (1-7/8 ounces) packed light brown sugar

MARSHMALLOW

2 (1/4-ounce) envelopes powdered unflavored gelatin

1 cup water, divided

1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar

1/4 cup (2-3/4 ounces) light corn syrup

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

CHOCOLATE GLAZE

12 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (a scant 2 cups), divided

2 teaspoons vegetable shortening

MAKE THE COOKIES:

Whisk the flours and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, until pale and fluffy. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour incrementally until a soft, cohesive dough forms. Mix until the dough begins to ball up and pull away from the sides of the bowl.

On a sheet of plastic wrap, shape the dough into a log about 8 inches long
and 1 inch in diameter; roll the dough in the plastic wrap to help form the log. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat liners.

Cut the log into 1/4-inch rounds and place on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes; the cookies will seem underbaked but shouldn’t be completely doughy in the center. Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the baking sheets for 2 minutes, then transfer to cooling racks to cool completely.

MAKE THE MARSHMALLOW:

Sprinkle the gelatin evenly over 1/2 cup water in the bowl of the stand mixer. Don’t bother to whisk; the gelatin will absorb the liquid on its own.

Stir the sugar, corn syrup, and remaining 1/2 cup water together in a high-sided saucepan over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved and the liquid no longer feels grainy. Clip a candy thermometer to the saucepan and bring the sugar syrup to a boil. When the sugar syrup reaches 245°F (firm-ball stage), remove it from the heat.

Carefully pour the hot syrup into the dissolved gelatin. Using the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk at low speed for 30 seconds. Gradually increase the mixer speed to medium-high and beat for about 6 minutes, adding the vanilla during the last minute. The liquid will turn from syrupy and frothy to a light, fluffy, and shiny white marshmallow mixture that forms soft peaks when the mixer is stopped and the whisk is lifted.

Fit a pastry bag or gallon-size zip-top bag with a large round piping tip and fill with marshmallow (see How to Fill a Pastry Bag,
page 187
). Pipe marshmallow on top of each cooled cookie. Allow the cookies to rest at room temperature for 1 hour to set the marshmallow.

COAT THE COOKIES WITH CHOCOLATE GLAZE:

Line a rimmed baking sheet with waxed paper and place a wire cooling rack on top, so that any excess chocolate will drip through the wire screen onto the paper.

Melt 8 ounces (1⅓ cups) of the chopped chocolate in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly with a silicone spatula for about 6 to 7 minutes, until the chocolate is fully melted and completely smooth.

Remove the pan from the heat and place on a cool surface. Stir in the
shortening until fully melted, then add the remaining 4 ounces of chocolate and stir to melt. Check the temperature as you stir; it needs to drop to 84°F to 86°F for the chocolate to temper. (What does “tempering chocolate” mean? See
page 127
.) Continue to stir periodically as the chocolate cools. Once the chocolate is at the right temperature, place it back over low heat and bring the temperature up to 91°F to 93°F. Don’t let the chocolate get hotter than 93°F or you’ll need to cool and heat it again, and that’s a pain.

Remove the chocolate from the heat and dip each Mallomar into the chocolate, marshmallow-side down. Flip gently with a fork to coat completely, spreading and removing any excess chocolate with the spatula. Lift the cookie out of the melted chocolate, allowing any globs of chocolate to drip off the cookie and back into the pan. Place the coated Mallomar on the wire rack.

Let the Mallomars rest at room temperature for at least 1 hour to allow the chocolate coating to harden before serving.

Store the cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

I bet you thought “Milano” was just a random name bestowed by Pepperidge Farm, but the cookies—at least the homemade version—really do have an Italian background. The recipe for the pale, crispy cookie wafers is based on a traditional recipe called
ossi dei morti
, or “bones of the dead.”

Want to make these in another flavor? Substitute orange, almond, or your favorite extract for the peppermint in the melted chocolate. Or just leave the chocolate plain for the original version.

YIELD:
about 18 to 20 sandwich cookies

TOTAL TIME:
2-1/2 hours including resting time

DIFFICULTY:
2

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT:
stand mixer, pastry bag (or zip-top bag) with large round piping tip

COOKIES

1-1/4 cups (5-3/8 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

3 large egg whites

8 tablespoons (4 ounces) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 cup (4 ounces) powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

CHOCOLATE FILLING

4 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (a scant ⅔ cup)

1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

MAKE THE COOKIES:

Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat liners.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Whisk the egg whites by hand in a separate small bowl for about 30 seconds, until bubbly, frothy, and slightly thickened but still liquid.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together starting on low speed until the butter coats the sugar, then on medium speed for about 2 minutes until the butter is pale and creamy. Scrape down the bowl and add the egg whites in thirds on low speed, making sure each addition is fully incorporated before drizzling in more. Scrape the bowl again, add the vanilla, and stir to incorporate. There will still be a few
small chunks of butter visible. Add the dry ingredients and stir until combined into a thick, whipped batter.

Fit a pastry bag or gallon-size zip-top bag with a large round piping tip and fill the bag with batter (see How to Fill a Pastry Bag,
page 187
). Form each cookie directly on a prepared baking sheet by piping a line of batter about 2-1/2 inches long, then reversing directions—still piping—to make a second line, forming a “U” with long edges touching. Space the cookies about 1-1/2 inches apart, since they’ll spread slightly. Because the batter is thicker than a typical frosting or filling, it may take a few tries to get into the rhythm of piping, and you may need to squeeze lower on the bag—closer to the piping tip—than you normally would.