Peppermint Oreos

Reading directions is apparently not my thing today. I misread the directions for the cookies and started mixing the butter and egg before I realized I was supposed to mix the sugar and egg. In an attempt to salvage the butter, I rinsed off the egg in a colander. This was such a ghetto thing to do, but I didn't want to be late for a painting class that Ashley and I were on our way to this afternoon.

I also misread the directions for the icing and put in 3 1/2 teaspoons of milk, instead of the tablespoons the recipe called for. I realized something was up when the mixture was still solid and then compensated. The icing turns out as more of a cream/glaze than true icing.

I choose this recipe today because I've been in such the holiday spirit! I'm going to visit Katie and Julie in NYC tomorrow for work, and we are going to see the Rockettes. Our tree is decorated at the house, and even Bacci can't wait for Santa.

After all of the ridiculous screw-ups, these cookies turned out great! The chocolate wafers were crunchy and tasty and the icing provided just the right amount of peppermint. If you want to get creative, you could tint the frosting green or red or crush up some peppermints and rolls the sides of the cookies in them.

Peppermint Oreos

adapted from a Whole Foods recipe

For the cookies:

1 2/3 cups flour

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

1 cup sugar

1 egg

2 teaspooons vanilla extract

3/4 cup butter, softened

For the icing:

3 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar

3 1/2 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon peppermint flavoring or extract

Pinch of fine salt

For the cookies:

Whisk together flour, cocoa and salt in a large bowl; set aside. In a second large bow, beat sugar and egg together with an electric mixer (I used the paddle attachment) until pale and thickened, about two minutes; beat in vanilla. Add butter and beat again until smooth, about one minute more (side note: here's where my batter wasn't as smooth as I thought it should be. I had some tiny beads of butter that just wouldn't disperse, probably because my butter was rinsed with water, and at the risk of overbeating, I let it go. If this happens to you, don't fret, the cookies still turned out fine). Add flour mixture in two parts and beat until combined. Shape dough into two logs that are uniformly round and about 8 inches long then wrap each snugly in parchment paper or saran wrap, twisting the sides of the paper/wrap. Chill for two hours.

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Cut dough crosswise into 1/4-inch thick slices and place on baking sheets about one inch apart. Bake until puffed and just cooked through, nine to ten minutes. Set aside to let cool completely.

For the icing:

Put sugar, milk, butter, peppermint flavoring and salt into a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer for one minute. Spread the flat side of half of the cookies with a dollop of icing, then sandwich with remaining cookies. Serve immediately or store cookies in an airtight container until ready to serve.

Yields about 40