I got the notion to make some sandwich cookies the other day. It's still not my favorite thing to do but I'm a little less reluctant to make roll-out cookies now that I've had a bit more experience and practice. These biscuit sandwich cookies (one of Martha's recipes) have been on my list of things to bake for a while. So armed with some extra heavy cream in the fridge, I thought it was time to make it happen.
No doubt, making roll-out and sandwich cookies take a little extra effort. But I hauled out my food processor and dusted off my rolling pin to give these a go. The dough comes together quickly and is fairly easy to roll out. But in typical form, I didn't roll my cookies as thin as they should be (rolling dough to 1/16th of an inch thickness is beyond my ability and patience level) and since the dough was sticking to my parchment paper, I needed to chill the rolled dough before I could remove the cut-outs from the sheet.
I don't know about you but whenever I'm make anything that involves cookie cutters, I can't resist the heart shape...
My sandwich cookies aren't nearly as thin or as chic as Martha's but I fully expected that. And even though my favorite kinds of cookies are generally the chewy, soft, gooey kind, I like a nice crispy one once in a while too. And the best part about a sandwich cookie must be the promise of a rich filling to be discovered within. I may have wanted to make these for the filling alone.
I decided to join these biscuit cookies with a chocolate fudge filling. Of course, for me, it must be chocolate in some form! Maybe I was thinking about how much I loved E.L. Fudge cookies as a kid or maybe it was the frugal side of me wanting to use up the extra condensed milk I had on hand (after making mango sago) but, either way, chocolate fudge called out to me.
I decided to join these biscuit cookies with a chocolate fudge filling. Of course, for me, it must be chocolate in some form! Maybe I was thinking about how much I loved E.L. Fudge cookies as a kid or maybe it was the frugal side of me wanting to use up the extra condensed milk I had on hand (after making mango sago) but, either way, chocolate fudge called out to me.
The original recipe actually pairs the cookies with melted milk chocolate (a good option since the cookies themselves are not very sweet) and suggests Nutella as a quick substitute. Both are excellent possibilities and I can't help but think of a number of other choices as far as the filling goes. Think: smooth peanut butter, melted dark chocolate (if you want to keep the overall cookie less sweet), ganache, some kind of jam, lemon curd, or even a buttercream (though that's not my thing) or a swipe of chestnut cream.
The cookies by themselves are buttery but not to the degree of Punitions or shortbread cookies, with a slightly salty bite. Not being very sweet or overwhelming in flavor, I think the cookies paired very well with the fudge filling, which is somewhat sweeter than ganache.
That's the neat thing about homemade things; you can customize it to your own liking. Whatever you choose to fill your biscuit sandwich cookies with, who doesn't love picking up a sandwich cookie, twisting it open, and licking the center?