Oreo Truffles

Originally I had planned elaborate treat baskets for all my friends for Valentine's Day, but I decided to make them into favor bags for Charlie's upcoming birthday party.

I've already made regular chocolate truffles for the favor bags, but I thought it would be nice to try out a new recipe too. Just about every food blog I read as made Oreo Truffles, and being so simple I just couldn't resist them. After having tried one I know I'll be making them again.

These Oreo Truffles are SO good. The centers are crunchy and creamy. They're so rich and decadent that I really only needed to eat one.

From what I've read you can use any kind of Oreos to make the truffles, so whatever flavor you feel like. I wouldn't recommend using Double Stuffed, people have said they fall apart and I think they would be too sweet. But feel free to experiment with golden, mint or chocolate filled Oreos. (I used generic Wegmans Sandwich Cookies and they worked perfectly.)

Use chocolate or white chocolate candy melts, it doesn't matter. I like the contrast between the centers and the white chocolate, but regular chocolate would be very delicious.

Oreo Truffles
(as seen on the internet everywhere)
1 package of Oreo chocolate sandwich cookies
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 lb(ish) white chocolate candy melts

Crush the Oreos as fine as you can get them, either with a food processor or a large ziplock bag and a lot determination. (I smashed them in a ziplock bag and it worked out great.)

In a large bowl, mix the crushed cookies and cream cheese. You can use a spoon, but it's much easier to mix by hand.

Scoop and roll out small balls of the cookie mixture. You want to get about 35-40 truffles, so use a teaspoon as a scooper. They should be one bite.

Chill for about an hour in the fridge (or half an hour in the freezer if you're impatient).

Melt white chocolate wafers in a double boiler or in the microwave. It took about 2 minutes in the microwave. You don't want it too hot, so pull it out before it's completely melted and stir it the rest of the way.

Dip each truffle into the melted chocolate and drop onto a parchment paper/wax paper lined tray. Once you've dipped them all, use a fork to shake any remaining chocolate over the top of the truffles.

Refrigerate until set.

Homemade Oreos

I've always been a little weary of the "homemade" versions of treats.
While homemade Samoas and Thin Mints have always looked delicious, the number of steps to the end product doesn't seem worth it. (Although at $3 a box, I might soon be reconsidering).

I ran into Homemade Oreo recipes a few times recently and thought it was time to get on the homemade bandwagon. There are two versions circulating The Thomas Keller Oreos and The Smitten Kitchen Oreos.

I went with the former, seduced by the white chocolate ganache, rolling out the dough took a little effort, but the cookie was so spot on the original. The combination with the white chocolate ganache filling was close to the storebought, but fresh and uniquely tasty. (I snuck a few before packing them up as a housewarming gift.)
These cookies got ecstatic responses from everyone who tried them and I'm sure I'll be coerced into making them again soon.
Homemade Oreos
1 1/2 cups plus 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
15 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 3/4" cubes, at room temperature
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 ounces white chocolate

In a small pan, bring the cream to a boil (if you prefer, you can do it in the microwave).
Pour cream over white chocolate, let sit for a minute and then whisk until smooth.
Refrigerate.

In a stand mixer, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt, and mix on low speed. With the mixer running, add the butter, a piece at a time. The mixture will look sandy, and will slowly begin to incorporate. Once it forms a dough transfer to a work surface.

Divide the dough in half. Roll each half between two large pieces of parchment paper to 1/8 inch thick. Stack the rolled sheets of dough onto a baking sheet (to keep them flat) and chill until firm, at least 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment (I used the same sheets that I chilled the dough in between.)

Working with one sheet of chilled dough at a time, use a round 2 to 2 1/2-inch cutter to cut the dough into rounds. Place the rounds about 1/2 an inch apart on the baking sheets. (They won't puff up.) Scraps can be rolled out again.
(I didn't have a roll cookie cutter, so I used a 2in flower cookie cutter, it worked fine.)
Bake for 12-15 minutes, let cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes then transfer to a baking sheet.

Once the cookies are completely cooled, whip up the filling with a mixer, it won't really grow in volume, but it needs to be fluffed up a little. Transfer to a piping bag/plastic baggie. Cut a small tip off the end. Pipe about a teaspoon and a half of filling onto half the cookies. Top with the remaining cookies and press down lightly. Refrigerate and enjoy.

Banana Oreo Ice Cream

Every summer my ice cream maker stares at me, and every summer I talk about making ice cream, but I just never seem to get motivated enough to do it.
However a recent trip to Boston and a homemade ice cream shop had me inspired. There I tried a wonderful Banana Oreo Ice Cream and have been thinking about replicating it ever since.

I decided not to make a custard base for my ice cream (this would involve eggs and stovetop cooking) and modified this banana ice cream recipe. One of the important changes I made was using fat-free half and half instead of milk or cream and the results were very satisfactory. Bananas have a lot creaminess so even without fat the froze well. (Of course there is fat added when you add the Oreos, but in comparison to most ice creams this one is pretty waist friendly.) You can actually make ice cream using only bananas, without an ice cream maker (one ingredient ice cream).

If you wanted to be really health conscious, nix the oreos and the sugar and add a little honey to taste. Or if you just don't care, use regular Half & Half, it'll work great too.

I would advise eating this the day that you make it, it can get a little hard in the freezer.

Banana Oreo Ice Cream
3 ripe bananas
3/4 (375 ml) Fat-Free Half & Half
1/3 cup of sugar
10 Oreos (or as many as you want)

Puree the bananas and Half & Half together, add sugar to taste (depending on the sweetness of the bananas). Let chill in the refrigerator until you're ready to use it. Pour the mix into your ice cream maker and follow it's instructions for freezing.

Put Oreos in a bag and smash them up into desired crumbliness.
Once the ice cream is firm scoop out of ice cream maker and gently mix in smashed Oreos, cover and place in freezer to set up.

Eat.