Edd Kimber of The Boy Who Bakes loves Oreo sandwich cookies, and over the years, he’s had fun playing around with different flavored homemade versions. This one hearkens back to a British holiday classic, the mince pie. Originally made with meat (hence the term “mince”), they’re individual pies filled with a syrupy spiced fruit filling. These sandwich cookies follow the same pattern, served alongside a rum-infused buttercream. If you can get ahold of ready-made mincemeat, feel free to use that instead of making your own. Find more of Edd Kimber’s holiday cookies in our 2018 Holiday Cookies special issue!
Mincemeat Rum Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
Makes 15
Ingredients
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (198 grams) unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (124 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon (124 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon (4 grams) vanilla extract
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (266 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (43 grams) black cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 grams) baking soda
- ½ teaspoon (1.5 grams) kosher salt
- Rum Buttercream (recipe follows)
- Quick Mincemeat Filling (recipe follows)
- Garnish: confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar at medium speed until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Beat in vanilla.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, black cocoa, baking soda, and salt. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating just until dough starts to come together. (If you overmix the dough, your cookies will end up chewy rather than crisp.) Turn out dough onto a work surface, and bring together into a uniform dough. Divide dough in half, and shape into disks. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 half sheet pans with parchment paper.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll half of dough to ⅛-inch thickness. Using a 2¾-inch fluted round cutter, cut dough, reserving scraps. Place cookies on prepared pans. Using a 1-inch star-shaped cutter, cut centers from half of cookies. Repeat with remaining dough. Gather all scraps, and briefly knead back into a uniform dough. Refrigerate until firm before repeating procedure once. (Don’t use the second round of scraps as working the dough further will make tough cookies.) Refrigerate cookies for 20 minutes.
- Bake until firm, about 9 minutes. Let cool on pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and let cool completely on wire racks.
- Place Rum Buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a small round piping tip. Pipe a ring of Rum Buttercream on flat side of all solid cookies. Fill centers with Quick Mincemeat Filling. Dust cookies with cutouts with confectioners’ sugar, if desired. Place cookies with cutouts, flat side down, on top of filling. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Rum Buttercream
Makes 1½ cups
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups (240 grams) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) spiced rum
- 1 teaspoon (4 grams) vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter at medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add confectioners’ sugar, and beat until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add rum, vanilla, and salt, and beat until combined, about 1 minute. Use immediately.
Quick Mincemeat Filling
Makes 1 cup
Ingredients
- Zest and juice of 1 orange (131 grams)
- ½ cup (64 grams) sultanas
- ½ cup (64 grams) raisins
- ¼ cup (55 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon (2 grams) mixed spice*
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) spiced rum
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine orange zest and juice, sultanas, raisins, brown sugar, and mixed spice. Cook over medium-high heat until sugar is dissolved and liquid has reduced and become syrupy. Remove from heat, and stir in rum. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use. When fully cooled, mixture should be thick like caramel. If too loose, it needs to cook slightly longer.
