Oreos are the quintessential American cookie. Who in their lifetime has not either split open or dunked a good Oreo or two…or five. I swear they taste even better at 2 am in the morning when you can’t sleep and your stomach is growling. Just sayin’…
I hardly ever buy Oreos though because my son will devour half a package in no time; and I don’t have much constraint when it comes to stopping at just one. For some reason I was compelled to try my hand at making them, but only after reading several comments from patrons who have visited the famed bakery in Boston named Flour. Their Oreos are known to be quite special. This recipe is from that baker, and is super easy. The recipe can be found in Joanne’s cookbook Flour. I found the recipe online from the Boston Globe. I only changed one minor thing- I used equal parts of regular and “black cocoa” which you can find online from King Arthur. The addition of black cocoa makes these the perfect dark black cookie the original Oreo is known for.
Homemade Oreos
recipe: adapted from Flour Bakery
Here is the link for the original recipe found in the Boston Globe
2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used half black cocoa and half regular)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1. In a medium bowl, whisk the butter and the sugar until combined. Whisk in the vanilla and melted chocolate. Add the egg and stir until well blended.
2. In another bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder(s), baking soda, and salt. Stir to blend them. Using a wooden spoon, stir the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture. The finished dough should feel like Play-Doh. Cover the dough with plastic, and set aside for 1 hour or until firm.
3. Place the dough on a long sheet of parchment paper. Use your hands to shape it into a rough log, about 10 inches long and 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Note: I split mine into two logs of equal length: which I then “nestle” each log into a split paper towel roll, which I use to ensure the dough stays round while chilling. Each log was the length of the paper towel roll. I always use this method when making slice and bake cookies. Each log ends up being about 2 inches in diameter.
Place the log at the edge of the parchment. Roll the parchment around the log. With your hands on the paper, roll the dough into a tighter log, keeping the diameter the same.
4. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or until it is firm enough to slice without crumbling.
5. Set the oven at 325° F . Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Remove the dough from the paper. Cut the logs into 1/4 inch slices. Set them on the baking sheets 1- 1 1/2 inches apart. They spread quite a bit.
7. Bake the cookies for 15 -20 minutes. Check after 15 minutes, or until they are firm when touched in the center. Mine were done exactly at 15 minutes.
8. Cool completely on the sheets.
Vanilla filling
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon milk
Pinch salt
1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter on low speed for half a minute. Add the vanilla and confectioners sugar and beat until smooth.
2. Beat in the milk and salt. The filling will look and feel like spackle.
3. Place 1-2 tsp. of filling on the flat side of one cookie. Press the remaining cookies on the filling, flat sides against the cream, to evenly distribute the filling. Note: I found it quite easier to put the filling into a pastry bag and portion out the filling by squeezing directly onto one of the cookie halves- it also gives a cleaner looking product.
4. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.