Blackstrap Molasses Cookie Sandwich

Bakers, this one's for you. Eaters of cookies, this one is also for you.

Every time I find myself baking something, what I plan to bake and what I actually end up baking are two completely different things. Maybe that means I have a short attention span. Or maybe I just have a need to continuously take things to the next level of sugar and fat content?

What was I saying again? Oh, right. Cookies.

This is a perfect example. It was a Sunday night, and I thought "I really feel like making a batch of sugar cookies". While looking for ingredients I found my bottle of blackstrap molasses tucked away behind a large bag of brown sugar. About an hour later? A monstrosity the likes of which the molasses-loving community will be talking about for... probably a couple of minutes. But really solid minutes.

If they even read this blog.

Ingredients:

1 cup canola oil

2 large eggs

1 cup light brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

3 tbsp blackstrap molasses

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

Lindt dark chocolate squares (70%)

Time commitment: 30 minutes, including baking and licking raw cookie dough from the bowl

Yield: About 20 sandwiches

Preheat your oven to 350F before starting. Combine the sugars, molasses, oil, vanilla and eggs into a large bowl, and mix by hand until combined. Mix the flour, salt and baking soda in a separate bowl and then fold into the wet ingredients with a spatula, about a third of the dry ingredients at a time. Use a 1/2 tbsp scoop to place balls of dough (which should be dark brown and sticky) about an inch apart on a cookie sheet lined with greased tin foil. (Don't have cooking spray? Pour some canola oil on a paper towel and spread around the foil in a light layer to grease. Voila!)

Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350F. The cookies will look brown and delicious. If they look a bit underdone, that's great. Trust me, it's the way you want it. As long as they hold together for the next part, you're good.

Let the cookies rest on the cookie sheet for about 2 minutes. Then, use a spatula to dislodge the cookies. Open up the Lindt chocolate and place one square (or two, you sly devil you) on an overturned cookie. Top the chocolate with a second cookie. Remove unused cookies (to be eaten while you wait for the sandwiches) and bake for an additional 3 minutes at 350F. Let them cool for about 5 minutes before you put them on a wire rack to cool.

The result? Pure molasses decadence with a chocolate filling.

It looks like a chocolate and molasses post-Vesuvius Pompeii that was crushed by a giant molasses cookie. Or a sweet version of a slider. Or just two cookies with some chocolate in the middle.

What's that you say? Something about leftover dough? No problem: place it in a Ziploc, press the air out and stick it in the freezer. When you want more cookies, take the Ziploc out and thaw the bag in room temperature water for about 10min before using. Frozen dough is especially handy for those nights when you were so busy crafting that you forgot to make something for dinner #smartlifechoices.

Until next time, enjoy!