homemade oreo cookies

Here’s the st-Oreo . . .

“Milk’s favorite cookie” will forever remind me of days at my friend Maura’s house—a convenient stone’s throw away from my parent’s house—which was always lively and where the Oreos were bountiful. I’d hang out with Maura and her four siblings, possibly after a game of jail break (i.e. chasing each other around the neighborhood, hopping fences, skinning knees), and we’d demolish sleeve after sleeve of Oreos.

But aside from the sheer volume of Oreos I consumed with Maura’s family, I think the biggest reason the cream filled chocolate sandwich cookie, to this day, reminds me of the her house is because of her family’s peculiar Oreo preference.

They always chose single stuffed. (gasp)

Now for me, when it comes to Oreos, I always considered Double Stuf far superior to single stuffed, and I thought that was universal opinion. But, apparently, people have interests in all sorts of chocolate to cream ratios. As a child, these are the things that stick.

Wouldn’t it be great to have a sleeve of Oreos that would satisfy all the stuffers?—the single, the double, and hey, even the triple!

Well now you can. And homemade Oreos are so much easier to make than you might think plus you can fill them with vanilla cream to your heart’s desire. These are super-simple and they taste just like the Oreos you remember . . . maybe even a little better ;-).

Now, tell me, what’s your favorite Oreo? Single stuffed or Double Stuf?

homemade oreo cookies
adapted from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery Cookbook

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes (Includes chill time)
Makes: about 14-16 2-inch sandwiches

Ingredients:

1 cup minus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
2/8 teaspoons baking soda
4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
½ teaspoon table salt
½ cup granulated sugar

For the filling
2 oz. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup vegetable shortening
2 cups confectioners sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa and baking soda to combine. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-low speed until smooth. Add the salt and mix again for 15 seconds. Add the sugar and mix again on medium-low for about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula.
3. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in 2 additions, mixing on low speed after each addition until just combined (after the second addition, the dough should come together).
4. Grab the dough into a ball and turn onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Using the heel of your hand, form the dough into a roughly 6-inch square block. Wrap snug with the plastic and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 2 days (or it can be frozen at this point for up to 1 month).
5. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap the dough but leave it on the plastic. Cover the top with a separate piece of plastic (so the dough is between the two sheets). With a rolling pin, roll out the dough as it is between the plastic until it is about 1/8 inch thick (It may be tough to roll at first, but it will get easier. If the dough gets too soft, return it to the fridge for a few minutes). Cut 2-inch rounds out of the dough with a cookie cutter or the top of a drinking glass and place on the prepared cookie sheets, leaving ¾ inch between each.
6. Bake for 15-17 minutes, turning the pans around halfway through the cooking time. The cookies are ready when you smell lots of chocolate and there are very small cracks on the surface. Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer them to a rack to cool completely.
7. Prepare the cream: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a medium bowl with a hand mixer), on low speed beat the butter and shortening together until smooth, about 45 seconds. With the mixer still on low, gradually add the confectioners sugar and vanilla. Turn up the speed to high and mix until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Place cream in a pastry bag fitted with a ½ round tip.
8. Assemble cookies: Once the cookies are cool, turn half of them upside down. Pipe dollops of the vanilla cream on the centers of the upside down cookies. Top each with a second cookie and press down lightly to sandwich the cookie. Continue until you have filled all the cookies.