Vanilla Spritz Sandwiches

My husband LOVES those Milano Cookies from Pepperidge Farms... naturally, who doesn't? When I came across a cookie recipe book at William Sonoma that offered a similar style cookie recipe I thought... SCORE... I can make those. Don't fret, I know you're thinking William Sonoma is pricey but I'm going to share the recipe with you. These are called Vanilla Spritz Sandwiches and they are just as good, if not better than the Milano Cookie (not to mention I happen to think they're cuter).

In a bowl, whisk together 2 1/4 cups of flour and half a teaspoon of salt.

In another bowl mix two sticks of butter and 1 cup confectioner's (powdered) sugar together. If you're using an electric mixer, use medium speed until the mixture becomes fluffy (about 2-3 mins).

Add 1 large egg and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and continue to mix until the egg becomes fully incorporated into the mixture.

Reduce the mixer to low (if you don't want a face full of flour) and SLOWLY add the flour-salt mixture.

When you're done, place the dough in a piping bag with the desired tip ( I used a plastic Wilton disposable bag with a star tip but you can use different tips for specific shapes).

The dough is going to take some firm pressure to come out of the tip so don't worry if your first couple of tries don't look perfect. Use parchment paper on dark non-stick baking pans and make 1-1 1/2 inch rosettes. You don't have to space them too far apart because the dough won't expand too much in the oven.

Place the baking sheets with the rosettes in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes.

Heat the oven to 325 degrees F and bake for 12-15 minutes, depending on the size. Watch these carefully while they bake because you don't want the edges to brown too much. 12 minutes were enough for mine.

Take them out and let them cool while you make your chocolate glaze...

For the glaze you will need 6 oz of semi-sweet chocolate ( I used Ghirardelli baking chips), 1/2 cup of heavy cream, 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, and a pinch of salt

Heat the cream and butter in a saucepan on MED heat and bring the mixture to a boil.

Remove it from the heat and add the chocolate and salt. Mix the chips until the mixture is smooth. You don't need to put the mixture back on the heat. Let the mixture cool for 30 minutes.

Take the cookies and match the undersides up so you have two cookies that are close enough in size. Put your glaze in a piping bag without a tip. Snip the tip of the bag and pipe the glaze on one cookie bottom, take the matching cookie and press down making a sandwich.

The recipe made about 20 sandwiches, with a few casualties here and there.

Cool them in the refrigerator for an hour or until the glaze is firm and ENJOY!