Hiiiiii! Hope your week isn’t giving you too much grief - and if it is, hopefully these wee cookie sandwiches make it better! I’ve been laying low recently, trying to get on top of what kind of feels like a never ending job list - we hid at home over the weekend to get some of it done. They aren’t exciting or big jobs - just a whole lot of those dumb ones that you let build up and suddenly feel like you’re drowning in. I’m sure it’s not just me who gets this? February is classic intense homesick time for me, so I kind of just stick my head down, keep to a routine, make sure I get out of the house enough, and ride it out. It seems to be working. Cookies definitely help.
These wee numbers come from my friends over at Cook: Real Food Everyday magazine! They are the savoury sister to Bake from Scratch, and each issue is jammed full of so many amazing dinner ideas - some of our absolute faves come from there! After a day of recipe testing baking recipes, I find it super relaxing to just follow a recipe for dinner, so am always on the lookout for inspiration. You can subscribe through their website - they have a digital version too if you’re not based in the states!
Alongside all their amazing savoury content, the magazine also has a couple of recipes perfect for weeknight baking - these Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Sandwich Cookies with Mascarpone Filling are from their latest issue! They are super simple to make, and the mascarpone filling really just takes them over the edge to make the perfect, easy to make cookie sandwich. I couldn’t help but doctor the recipe just a teeny bit - I used some muscovado sugar in place of some of the brown, used half old fashioned oats and half quick cooking to give some chew, and also added a little chocolate. All of these variations are totally optional - I will list the alternatives in the notes!
A few wee tips:
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A couple of pointers from Cook: Make sure that your mascarpone and butter are the same temperature when you make the cookies, to ensure that the frosting comes together nicely. If it seems like it is splitting a little, I sometimes take out a tablespoon or two and melt it in the microwave, then whip it back into the mixture to help even out the temperature.
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I like to roughly chop some of my chocolate for this, to help distribute it a little! I pulled some of the chunks out of the batter and put them on top of the dough balls to ensure some chocolate on the tops of the cookies!
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The cookies alone are bomb. I made a batch as a test and they got demolished, so if you don’t want to fill them, then you can have them as is!
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I subbed some of the quick cooking oats for old fashioned oats, which have a bit more substance to them. I just did half of the amount by weight - if you only have quick cooking oats, or only old fashioned, either work! I probably should have accounted for the change in weight with subbing old fashioned oats, but I winged it and it worked just fine. Haha. Whoops.
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I also added chopped chocolate - leave it out if you want!
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The final sub I made was swapping a little of the light brown sugar for muscovado - if you do not have this on hand, use the same amount of brown sugar in place of muscovado!
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The cookies might come out of the oven looking not quite perfectly round - for sandwich cookies I like to have them as round as possible! To help correct this, I take a round cookie cutter bigger than the cookie, and use it to nudge the still warm cookie into a round shape.
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You may have more cookies than you have baking sheets for. This happens to me often - just hold off scooping all of them, and then once the first batch is out and cooled enough to move to a rack, re-use that baking sheet.
Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Sandwich Cookies with Mascarpone Filling
- Makes about 18 Sandwich Cookies -
Recipe very slightly adapted from Cook: Real Food Every Day
Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies
285g unsalted butter, at room temperature
200g light brown sugar
130g muscovado sugar, or light brown sugar
1 egg, room temperature
2 tsp vanilla (I used vanilla bean paste)
140g quick cooking oats
140g old fashioned oats (or quick cooking oats)
190g all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
1/2 tsp kosher salt
250g good quality dark chocolate (I used 70% wafers), roughly chopped (see notes)
Flaky sea salt for finishing
Mascarpone Filling
115g unsalted butter, at room temperature
225g mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla (I used vanilla bean paste)
1/2 tsp salt
360g powdered sugar, sifted
- PROCESS -
OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES
Preheat the oven to 375° / 190°c. Line three baking trays with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and muscovado sugar on medium high until light and fluffy, approximately 4 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat until combined. Scrape down the bowl to ensure it is evenly incorporated.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Add to the bowl of the stand mixer, and mix until just combined.
Remove the bowl from the mixer and add the chocolate, incorporating by hand.
Scoop the dough into 2 Tbsp balls (I used a #16 scoop). Roll into balls with your hands, and space evenly on a baking tray. (I fitted about 8 per sheet).
Bake the trays, one at a time, for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt as soon as they come out of the oven. Allow to cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Repeat the baking process with the remaining baking trays until all of the cookies are baked.
MASCARPONE FILLING AND ASSEMBLY
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter, mascarpone, vanilla, and salt on medium speed until combined, 2-3 minutes. Add the sifted powdered sugar, and beat for a further 2 minutes, until light and fluffy.
Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a french star tip (I used Ateco #865).
Pair up the cookies into pairs of equal sizes. Pipe a round of filling onto one half of the cookie, and sandwich with the second half, pressing down gently.
Refrigerate until serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
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