Chocolate Crème Sandwiches

These are not Oreos, but they will no doubt remind you of them. Mine are a little less brittle and a little less sweet than the originals, but they’re just as snackable. Snackable, as in perfect for kids’ lunch boxes and as in just right for midnight.The dough for these cookies is a joy to work with: It doesn’t budge in the oven. Whatever size and shape you choose for the dough is what the cookies will be. I usually cut these with a plain 2-inch round cutter — however, because they are so well behaved, you can use a scalloped cutter or choose to make them a different size.The filling is just as variable. I’ve chosen classic vanilla, but you can flavor the crème with a small amount of peppermint, orange or lemon oil (start with a few drops and keep tasting), pure rose extract or espresso powder. You can also tint the filling. Although the filling doesn’t truly set, it is thick enough to play with, and can be doubled to make chubbier sandwiches.A word on cocoa: The darker the cocoa you use for these, the darker and more like Oreos your cookies will be. I use cocoa powder made by Valrhona; it’s very dark brown with hints of red. If you want an even darker color, you can use a combination of black cocoa (available online from King Arthur Flour) and Dutch-processed cocoa powder. As with all cookies, it’s the taste that counts. Because cocoa has no fat, it will never have the richness of your favorite chocolate, but it will give rich flavor to whatever you’re baking, so choose your cocoa as carefully as you choose your chocolate.Recipe excerpted from Dorie Greenspan’s newest cookbook Dorie’s Cookies. Click here to purchase your own copy.