C is for Cookie
There are a couple of cookies I consider classics, one being Chocolate Chip and the other, the Oreo. Thomas Keller’s Oreo or TKO for short is a much more sophisticated sandwich cookie. The dark exterior comes from the cocoa powder in the dough and Chef Keller asks for cocoa noir or black cocoa to get a deep, rich flavor that is not as sweet as the traditional Oreo. The cookie is balanced with a sweet, white chocolate ganache filling that is smooth in contrast to the chalky consistency of the store bought version.
UPDATE 1/14/13: Serious Eats has featured this recipe on their blog with permission from Chefs Thomas Keller and Sebastien Rouxel. You can view the recipe here
Per the recipe, I used my 3″ scallop cutter to make large chocolate cookies. The preparation for this cookie is similar to the Better Nutter but this dough is not quite as sticky so it is easier to roll out. I again, did this straight on the work surface rather than between parchment sheets. These cookies are to be 1/8″ thickness so they can be bake up nice and crisp.
Now back to the cocoa, I was not working out of my normal kitchen or else I would have used Valrhona cocoa, which is Thomas Keller’s recommendation if one does not have cocoa noir. I used a combination of mostly Ghirardelli and Trader Joe’s unsweetened cocoa which on the scale of cocoa intensity probably falls somewhere in the middle. This blog here has a photo comparison of common cocoa powders.
After making a few 3″ cookies, I went ahead and did the rest in mini with my 1-7/8″ cutter.
Piping kisses of white chocolate ganache into the cooled cookies. This isn’t the recommended piping technique, see further down in the post for that, but these 2″ cookies are so tiny, dollops are the least labor intensive.
Again, not being in my own kitchen I had to use Nestle white chocolate chips, which I cringe saying because as I expected the additives in the chips interfered with the consistency of the ganache. It never became firm and I had incorporate melted white chocolate (from a bar this time) to get the ganache to harden. Then I whipped it in a mixer to loosen it slightly and piped on the cookies.
The piping technique provided is not something I’ve done before. Using a round tip, you pipe tear drop shapes in concentric circles going from the outside towards the center.
The effect is really beautiful as you can see the indents in between each tear drop that mirror the scallop edge of the cookie.
If you are not going to serve/eat them that day, I would recommend leaving them unfilled and assemble as needed. In 24 hours the cookie does soften.
As far as taste goes, I can’t really compare this with a traditional Oreo. They are so different. The Oreo I will always associate with childhood and those times when I crushed them and mixed them into chocolate pudding to make dirt. The TKO will be the mature, grown up cookie. Oh I do have to note, the saltiness in of the cookie is great and really hits at the end of eating the cookie. The recipe calls for 2 teaspoons which seems like a lot, but please do try it! As for the white chocolate ganache, I know it is not a favorite of many because it is extra sweet, but here it really works and it is mellowed down by the addition of cream and butter.
Week 5 of the Bouchon Bakery Book Project
Read the Project recap on the TKOs
Bake with us!
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