ORANGE-POPPY SEED SANDWICH COOKIES

Orange-Poppy Seed Sandwich Cookies image

After years of carefully studying dessert habits, I've begun to refine my theory that there are two types of people-those who like lemon desserts and those who like chocolate. I've observed that there's a subspecies that likes desserts with a crunch, a group that includes me. I'm a big fan of seeds, and I like to add them to these jam-filled cookies to put them squarely in the crunchy camp. Or should I say "roundly," since they are, indeed, round. But feel free to use any cookie cutters you have-round, square, oval, or even heart-shaped.

Yield makes about 18 cookies

Number Of Ingredients 10

Ingredients

2 cups (280 g) all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons (70 g) poppy seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (8 ounces/225 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (100 g) sugar
1 large egg yolk
Grated zest of 2 oranges, preferably organic
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons orange-flavored liqueur, such as Grand Marnier, Cointreau, or Triple Sec
About 1/2 cup (160 g) strained apricot or raspberry jam

Steps:

In a small bowl, stir together the flour, poppy seeds, and salt.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a bowl by hand), beat together the butter and the sugar on medium speed just until smooth. Stir in the egg yolk, orange zest, vanilla, and orange-flavored liqueur until completely incorporated. Add the flour mixture and beat just until the dough comes together and no streaks of butter remain.
Turn out the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form it into a rectangle about 1 inch (3 cm) thick. Wrap the dough tightly and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Divide the dough into 2 pieces. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out 1 piece of dough about 1/2 inch (1.5 cm) thick, sprinkling the work surface with only as much flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking (too much flour can make the cookies tough).
Using a 2-inch (5-cm) round cookie cutter, cut out circles of dough. Place them on one of the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 1 inch (3 cm) apart. Repeat with the second piece of dough, then reroll the dough scraps. Using a 1/2-inch (1.5-cm) round cookie cutter (the wide end of a metal pastry tip works well, too), cut out the centers of half of the circles, making sure you have the same number of solid cookies as you do those with cut-outs.
Bake, rotating the baking sheets midway through baking, until the cookies are lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Let cool completely on the baking sheets.
Spread a rounded teaspoon of jam on all of the solid cookies, then top with the cut-out cookies, making sandwiches.
The dough can be chilled for up to 4 days, or frozen for up to 1 month. The filled cookies will keep well, stored in an airtight container, for up to 4 days.
For a slightly exotic taste, substitute 1/2 teaspoon of orange-flower water for the orange liqueur. Or, for lemon-flavored cookies, use the grated zest of 2 lemons.
You can fill the orange-flavored cookies with chocolate instead of jam: Heat 2 ounces (60 g) of chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate with 3 tablespoons (45 ml) heavy cream in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Use 1 teaspoon of the chocolate mixture for each cookie sandwich. Another option is to fill them with Nutella or a similar spreadable chocolate-hazelnut paste.