Homemade Nutella Oreos

Homemade Nutella Oreos - made dough November 3, 2018 from Crazy for Crust

I've mentioned before that one of the rare store-bought cookies I like are Oreos. (The other two are Tim Tams and Biscoff cookies for anyone keeping track.) I don't buy or eat them often but they're my guilty pleasure. So I'm always interested in any homemade version of them.

I have to admit though, I cheated on the filling. I listed it as originally found on Crazy for Crust in case anyone wants to make them as intended. Me? I used - what else - Nutella as the filling. An oft-used trick for the lazy or busy baker. It works, either way.

The cookies themselves turned out a little crunchy rather than soft, which surprised me at first but makes sense. Oreos are crisp in cookie texture. The homemade version shouldn't be soft or mushy and these weren't. Use a dark chocolate cocoa powder (another plug for Pernigotti cocoa) so the chocolate cookies will have a robust, dark, rich chocolate flavor. Also, make the cookie balls small and as uniform as possible. I also recommend flattening the little dough balls into discs so they'll bake to a uniform thickness. You don't want the individual cookies to be too thick or else the sandwich cookies will be too thick.

Cookies
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Nutella
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

1. Whisk flour, salt, baking soda and cocoa powder in medium-sized bowl;set aside.
2. Cream butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Cream until smooth and combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Mix in egg and vanilla. Add dry ingredients and beat until just combined.
3. Scoop into small dough balls, cover and chill or freeze for several hours or overnight. 
4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and evenly space cookie dough balls. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes or until the edges are set and middles no longer look raw. Remove to wire racks and let cool completely.
5. Filling: beat butter, salt and Nutella with electric mixer until smooth and combined. Slowly add powdered sugar, beating until mixture is smooth and thick. Add vanilla and 1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream. Beat for 30 seconds then add more cream as needed for consistency, up to 1 tablespoon.
6. Pipe filling onto the bottom of half the cookies then sandwich with second cookie. Store in airtight container.