Delicious Orange Chocolate Sandwich Cookies – Orange scented poppy seed shortbread cookies filled with a smooth bittersweet chocolate ganache!
Today’s post is not sponsored, however, King Arthur gifted me their Fiori Di Sicilia extract to try. All thoughts and opinions expressed on my website are my own.
About King Arthur’s Fiori Di Sicilia Extract
King Arthur’s Fiori di Sicilia essence is a delicious blend of bright citrus and warm vanilla with a subtle floral aroma! It’s no wonder it’s a best seller with over 10,000 5-star reviews. Seriously, the smell is so intoxicating and a little goes a long way. It truly is the best compliment to any recipe and a MUST try!
It goes so perfectly with today’s cookie recipe. Lets get started!
Orange Chocolate Sandwich Cookies Ingredients
Orange Poppy Seed Cookies
- Unsalted Butter
- Confectioners’ Sugar
- Fiori Di Sicilia Extract or Vanilla Paste
- Orange Zest
- All-Purpose Flour
- Fine Salt
- Poppy Seeds
Chocolate Ganache Filling
- Chocolate – You can use milk chocolate, semi-sweet or dark chocolate.
- Heavy Cream
Orange Chocolate Sandwich Cookies Instructions
Orange Poppy Seed Cookies
Step 1 – With a hand-held mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix room temperature butter until light and fluffy. Then add confectioners’ sugar and Fiori di Sicilia extract and continue to mix until incorporated. About 2 minutes. *You can also mix by hand.
Step 2 – Add sifted flour, salt, poppy seeds and orange extract and mix on low until combined. Do not overmix. The dough will be a bit sticky.
Step 3 – Transfer dough to cling wrap and chill for at least 1 hour. I like to shape the dough into a rectangle, about 1-inch (2.5 cm) thickness to make it easier to roll out later.
Step 4 – Roll your dough out to ¼ inch (6.3 mm) thickness. Lightly dip your cookie cutter into flour and cut out your cookies. With a thin metal spatula, carefully transfer the cookies to 2 lined baking trays, placing them 2 inches apart. Gather the scraps, reroll and cut out more cookies. I used a round 2 inch (5 cm) cookie cutter and got 32 cookies, making a total of 16 sandwiches. If at any point the dough gets too warm from handling, don’t fret, pop it back in the fridge for 15 minutes or so to firm up!
Step 5 – Place the trays of cookies in the freezer for 20 minutes before baking. This is a very important step and cannot be skipped!
Step 6 – Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350ºF (180ºC). Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, one tray at a time. Allow to sit on the tray for about a minute, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Ganache Filling
Step 1 – Finely chop your chocolate bar and set aside.
Step 2 – Place heavy cream in a small bowl and heat until warm (30 to 45 seconds). Add finely chopped chocolate into your warm cream, making sure it’s completely submerged. Let stand for 3 minutes then slowly mix until incorporated. Allow to thicken at room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes.
Step 3 – Add about 2 teaspoons of ganache onto the flat side of one cookie and make a sandwich by topping with another cookie. Repeat with the remaining. Enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Follow the recipe exactly. My recipe has been carefully tested and written in grams to ensure you get the best results. I highly recommend weighing the ingredients with a kitchen scale, as it’s the most accurate way to bake. You can read more about this below!
- If you are not using a kitchen scale, measure your flour correctly. Fluff and aerate your flour first, then spoon into your measuring cup and finally level off with the back of a butter knife. Do not pack it in as it will add too much flour.
- Chill, chill and chill! The best part about shortbread cookies is that it’s full of butter. To prevent the cookies from spreading and losing its beautiful shape, we will need to chill the dough several times.
- After rolling out the dough, I like to put it back in the fridge to firm up for 15 minutes. It makes it easier to cut out your cookies.
- When cutting the cookies, you can also dip the cutter into flour to help them release easier.
- You can make the dough 5 days in advanced. Just wrap tightly in cling wrap and store in the fridge. When you are ready to roll out your dough, allow to sit on the counter to soften a bit before rolling out.
- Do not underbake these cookies. They should be cooked through and somewhat crisp.
- When mixing your ganache, use a spatula instead of a whisk, and mix slowly. Mixing it too quickly can create air bubbles and make the texture grainy.
- If you are in a hurry, you can place the ganache in the fridge for 10 minutes to cool down. Keep an eye on it though, you don’t want it to be too firm.
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Recipe
Orange Poppy Seed Cookies with Chocolate Ganache
- Total Time: 20 Mins Prep + 1.5 Hr Chill + 30 Mins Bake
- Yield: About 16 Cookie Sandwiches 1x
Description
Delicious Orange Chocolate Sandwich Cookies – Orange scented poppy seed shortbread cookies filled with a smooth chocolate ganache!
Ingredients
Orange Poppy Seed Cookies
- 1 ½ Sticks (169 g) Unsalted Butter, room temp
- ½ Cup (56 g) Confectioners Sugar, sifted
- ½ Tsp King Arthur Fiori di Sicilia Extract or 1 Tsp Vanilla Paste
- 1 ½ Cups (180 g) All-Purpose Flour, sifted
- ½ Tsp Fine Salt
- 2 Tsp Poppy Seeds
- Zest of 1 large Orange
Chocolate Ganache Filling
- ½ Cup (113 g) Heavy Cream
- 4 oz (113 g) Chocolate Bar, finely chopped
Instructions
Orange Poppy Seed Cookies
- With a hand-held mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix room temperature butter until light and fluffy. Then add confectioners’ sugar and Fiori di Sicilia extract and continue to mix until incorporated. About 2 minutes. *You can also mix by hand.
- Add sifted flour, salt, poppy seeds and orange extract and mix on low until combined. Do not overmix. The dough will be a bit sticky.
- Transfer dough to cling wrap and chill for at least 1 hour. I like to shape the dough into a rectangle, about 1-inch (2.5 cm) thickness to make it easier to roll out later.
- Roll your dough out to ¼ inch (6.3 mm) thickness. Lightly dip your cookie cutter into flour and cut out your cookies. With a thin metal spatula, carefully transfer the cookies to 2 lined baking trays, placing them 2 inches apart. Gather the scraps, reroll and cut out more cookies. I used a round 2 inch (5 cm) cookie cutter and got 32 cookies, making a total of 16 sandwiches. If at any point the dough gets too warm from handling, don’t fret, pop it back in the fridge for 15 minutes or so to firm up!
- Place the trays of cookies in the freezer for 20 minutes before baking. This is a very important step and cannot be skipped!
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350ºF (180ºC). Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, one tray at a time. Allow to sit on the tray for about a minute, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Ganache Filling
-
Finely chop your chocolate bar and set aside.
-
Place heavy cream in a small bowl and heat until warm (30 to 45 seconds). Add finely chopped chocolate into your warm cream, making sure it’s completely submerged. Let stand for 3 minutes then slowly mix until incorporated. Allow to thicken at room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes.
-
Add about 2 teaspoons of ganache onto the flat side of one cookie and make a sandwich by topping with another cookie. Repeat with the remaining. Enjoy!
Notes
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature and enjoy for up to 4 days.
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