Filled Chocolate Spritz Recipes

Steps:

• Make the cookies: Preheat the oven to 325˚. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and egg until just combined. Reduce the mixer speed to medium low and beat in the flour mixture until just combined.
• Fit a cookie press with a wreath disk; fill with the dough according to the manufacturer's instructions. Press cookies 1 inch apart onto 2 unlined baking sheets.
• Bake the cookies, 1 pan at a time, until crisp and set around the edges, 18 to 22 minutes. Immediately remove the cookies to a rack using an offset spatula and let cool completely. Repeat with the remaining cookies.
• Once the cookies have cooled, make the icing: Combine the chocolate, heavy cream and butter in a medium heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (do not let the bowl touch the water). Stir until melted and smooth, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir in the peppermint extract; let cool 5 minutes.
• Transfer the icing to a resealable plastic bag, snip off a corner and drizzle over the cookies. Immediately sprinkle with crushed candy canes. Let set, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Beat butter in a large mixing bowl using an electric mixer until creamy; add sugar, cocoa powder, and baking powder. Beat until combined. Scrape sides of bowl down if needed. Stir egg and vanilla extract into butter mixture until just combined; mix in flour.
• Fill the cookie press with dough; press cookies onto an ungreased baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until edges of cookies are lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes.

Steps:

• On a baking sheet roast almonds until lightly browned, about 6-8 minutes, toss every 2-3 minutes Allow to cool to room temperature.
• FOOD PROCESSOR METHOD---------------------.
• Grind almonds and sugar in a food processor until very fine.
• Cut butter into 16 chunks, with the processor add butter a chunk at a time.
• Process until creamy.
• Scrape down bowl.
• Add egg and extract, process until mixed, scrape down bowl.
• Add flour and salt, pulse until just combined.
• Scrape into a bowl.
• ELECTRIC MIXER METHOD--------------------------°- .
• Whisk flour and salt in a medium bowl.
• Cut butter in to 16 pcs, Allow butter and eggs to come to room temperature.
• Grind almonds to a fine powder (can be done with a rolling pin and a plastic bag).
• In a second medium bowl cream butter, sugar until very light and fluffy.
• Add almonds, beat until well combined.
• Lightly beat egg and extracts, add to butter mixture, beat until just combined.
• Stir in flour and salt until just combined.
• BOTH METHODS---------------------.
• With a cookie press or pastry bag fitted with a no 22 tip, put cookies on parchment lined cookie sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart.
• Decorate with colored sugar, etc.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Refrigerate Cookies on the sheet for 20 minutes, this will help them hold their shape.
• Bake cookies one pan at a time for 8-10 minutes (until very lightly browned), rotate pan halfway through the baking to promote even cooking.
• Allow to sit on sheet for 3-4 minutes, remove with an angled spatula to a rack.
• Cool completely.
• FILLING----------------------.
• Melt 3/4 of the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water (160 degrees or so) (bowl must not touch water).
• When chocolate starts to melt remove from heat and stir until smooth, add remaining chocolate and stir until smooth.
• Let the chocolate sit until it's no longer warm to the touch and SLOWLY beat in the butter.
• Do not over beat this mixture.
• Place the mixture in a freezer bag (corner cut off) or pastry bag and pipe it on to the bottom of 1/2 of the cookies.
• Cover with second half to form a sandwich.
• Do about 10 at a time as the chocolate mixture will start to set up.
• Let cookies set for 2 hours for filling to set 100%.
• Store covered in an airtight container for about a month.

Steps:

• Cream butter, sugar, egg and vanilla in a large mixin g bowl until light and fluffy.
• Add mixture of flour, cocoa and salt gradually; mix well.
• Press through cookie press onto cool ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 5 minutes or until set. Remove onto wire rack.
• Cool completely.