Page 68: Chocolate Chip Cookies/Cookie Sandwiches

Okay, this one is going to be a doozie. Trust me... I laughed... I cried... I shrieked. It was an experience. So grab a cup of coffee and settle in for the ride.

If you recall, I made frosting last week with the intention of using it for the better-than-creamy filling between some yet-unbaked chocolate chip cookies. The chocolate chip cookie sandwich was one of the goodies I tried (and LOVED) from the BabyCakes shop in NYC, so these darlings have been topping my "to bake" list for weeks.

Step One: Make frosting
Check. See below.

Step Two: Make cookies

It just so happens that it was a cloudy, rainy weekend in paradise so it was a perfect weekend for baking. After the Saturday morning muffins with still no sign of sunshine, I started mixing up the dough. It definitely passed the cookie dough test. YUM.

Next up was baking the cookies. As previously discussed in the double chocolate chip cookie post, I like chubby cookies. But I knew I needed flatter cookies for these sandwiches... and so started the drama.

I loaded up the cookie sheet, put the first batch in the oven, and obediently went to turn the sheet 180 degrees at the nine minute mark. But as I opened the oven - and this is where the shriek came in - THIS is what I saw:

Yep, not pretty. Visions of sheet after sheet of unicookies (which are completely useless for sandwich making) flashed through my brain. I feared all hope of recreating these magical sandwiches might be lost.

So I took the next sheet - already neatly lined with perfect little dough balls - and started over. I dumped all the little dough balls back into the bowl and started lining the cookie sheet with slightly smaller little dough balls.

The result... a bit better... but still... not there yet. So this time I tried even a bit smaller, and also didn't flatten them down quite as much before baking.

Better. We were getting there. And this process is how I ended up with at least three different sizes of cookies. Not ideal when attempting to pair up cookies for sandwiches.

I have not perfected the cookies yet, but you have my word that I will diligently practice until perfection is achieved. Sometimes these things take time.

Step Three: Pair up cookies
I was like the eHarmony of chocolate chip cookies. Taking the various sizes of cookies - small, medium, and large - and finding each cookie's perfect mate.

Step Four: Assemble sandwiches
Here comes the fun part. Despite my less than perfect cookies, they made DELICIOUS sandwiches!

With the chilled frosting I was pleased - pleased enough to eat more than I should have during the assembly process. But then I stuck them in the freezer to set and when we went back for dessert on Sunday... OH MY WORD. The frosting resembled my favorite coconut milk ice cream and the cookies - even straight out of the freezer - were perfectly chewy! And now they are tucked safely in the back of my freezer. That's right - you have to know the secret code word to gain access. They are that good.

Although I fell far short of the prefect BabyCakes chocolate chip cookie sandwich here, these are definitely my favorite BabyCakes treat to date and I will be making them again. Maybe not anytime soon - I mean I still have a whole book minus four recipes to go - but definitely again.

*** Also - big props to my sister, Amy, for the new look.  Isn't it cute?!  Thanks, Amy! ***