Fantastic Fudgewiches

I made these yummy chocolate cookies yesterday. Cookies of any variety are a treat, but there's something special about sandwich cookies, don't you think? These cookies were not difficult to make and seemed even more manageable when only working with part of the dough. It keeps in the fridge, so you can make part of the recipe one day and the rest the next, if you'd like. I'm not a big fan of recipes that are so sensitive you have to bake all the dough at once. Too time-consuming.
Get your chocolate fix with these Fantastic Fudgewiches from Nancy Baggett's The All-American Cookie Book.
(I got my copy of the recipe from the book, but I found it reprinted online here and copied it for you below).

FANTASTIC FUDGEWICHES

MAKES 20 TO 25 COOKIES

It's best not to make the cookies too large, as two wafers and an ample amount of filling yield a generous serving. For convenience, the fudge may be made ahead and reheated when needed to fill the sandwiches. From "The All-American Cookie Book," by Nancy Baggett (Houghton-Mifflin, 2001)

WAFERS:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted after measuring, if lumpy

1 teaspoon baking powder

2/3 cup (1 stick plus 2 2/3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, slightly softened

2 tablespoons flavorless vegetable oil

3/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Scant 1/2 teaspoon salt

QUICK FUDGE:

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels

1 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, broken up or coarsely chopped

1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

About 1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, optional

WAFERS:

In a large bowl, thoroughly stir the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder; set aside. In another large bowl, with an electric mixer on low then medium speed, beat together the butter, oil and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla and salt, and beat until well blended and smooth. Beat or stir in the flour mixture until evenly incorporated.

Divide the dough in half. Place each portion between large sheets of wax paper. Roll out each portion 1/8-inch thick; check the underside of the dough and smooth out any wrinkles that form. Stack the rolled portions (paper still attached) on a baking sheet. Refrigerate for 45 minutes, or until chilled and firm but not hard, or freeze for about 20 minutes to speed chilling. (If desired, the dough may be held for up to 24 hours; let warm up slightly before using.)

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease several baking sheets or coat with nonstick spray.

Working with one portion at a time and leaving the remaining dough chilled, gently peel away, then pat 1 sheet of wax paper back into place. Flip the dough over, then peel off and discard the second sheet.

Using a 2-inch round or square cutter, cut out the cookies. If desired, using a mini cutter, the larger end of a pastry piping tip or a thimble, cut away a small hole from the center of half the cookies. (If at any point the dough softens too much to handle easily, transfer the paper and cookies to a baking sheet and refrigerate or freeze until firm again.)

Using a spatula, carefully transfer the cookies to the baking sheets, spacing about 1 1/2 inches apart. Place the solid rounds on one sheet and the rounds with the holes on another. Re-roll any dough scraps. Continue cutting out cookies until all the dough is used.

Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, in the upper third of oven to 6-9 minutes, or until almost firm when pressed in centers; cutaways will bake faster. Reverse the sheet from front to back halfway through cooking.

Transfer sheet to a wire rack and let stand until the cookies firm up slightly. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

FUDGE:

In a 1-quart or similar saucepan, stir the condensed milk, chocolate morsels, unsweetened chocolate and butter over medium-low heat. Heat, stirring constantly, until the chocolates melt and the mixture is smooth; be careful not to burn. Immediately remove from heat. Stir in vanilla, let cool until thickened just enough to spread.

Spread the fudge about 1/3-inch thick on the underside of each cookie bottom. (If the fudge stiffens while you work, reheat over low heat, stirring constantly.)

Center the tops over the bottoms and press down lightly. Lightly dust tops with cocoa powder if desired.

Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Wafers can be frozen for up to 1 month but should not be filled and sandwiched together until shortly before serving.