Raspberry White Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

I've started Pinteresting again.  It's a huge problem.  It's like constantly window-shopping.  I have convinced myself that I need allllllllll sorts of new and exciting clothes, makeup, food, decor, etc.  Fortunately Pinterest is also a useful supplier of fitness-related guilt trips and hilarious pictures of animals.

Anyway, it's also a HUGE source of inspiration for baking ideas...of which I've attempted several in the past week or two.  I've had some successes and several total failures.  But most importantly, I have more dessert (some more delicious than others) in my house than even Jim can handle.  And that's saying something.

These are my most recent project...a pretty, colorful little farewell to summer.  Because boy am I ready for it to GO.  I mean, the warmth is nice and all, but in Georgia it also comes with 2000% humidity, daily thunderstorms, bugs the size of your head, and snakes that slither their way into your kitchen.  That's right, your kitchen.



I told this story on facebook already, and was met with much concern/requests for snake-related recipes...but anyway.  Let's just say he was small but frighteningly colorful.  You never really put much effort into memorizing snake rhymes until your (and Cricket's) life depends on it.  Just fyi, just in case...red touches yellow, kill a fellow, red touches black, venom lack.  In the heat of the moment I was confused...who's the fellow?  Is the snake the fellow?  Am I the fellow?  WHO IS IT?

Don't worry though, everyone is safe and enjoying raspberry white chocolate cookies now.  Mini moon pies if you will.

Raspberry White Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
(adapted from Martha Stewart)

1 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
10 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups + 2 tsp sugar
1 egg
3 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 1/2 cups fresh raspberries
7 oz. white chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

Mix butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar in a stand mixer about 2-3 minutes on medium until light and fluffy.  Add egg, vanilla and almond extracts, and mix until smooth.  Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture slowly, stirring until combined.  

Scoop batter out using a 1/2 Tbsp measuring spoon onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing cookies about 2 inches apart.

Bake cookies 4 minutes.  Remove cookie sheet and tap on counter until cookies flatten out a bit.  Replace cookies in the oven and bake another 3-4 minutes or until just set.  Allow cookies to cool on the sheet before removing to wire racks.  

Puree raspberries and 2 tsp sugar in a food processor.  Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a small bowl, pressing through to extract as much juice as possible.  Discard seeds.  Set raspberry puree aside.  

Melt white chocolate either in a double boiler or in the microwave gradually (15 seconds at a time, stirring until melted).  Whisk in cream in a slow stream.  Slowly whisk in raspberry puree.  Refrigerate up to 45 minutes or until thickened enough to spread comfortably.  

Spread 1 heaping tsp on the bottom of half the cookies.  Sandwich each with the remaining cookies.  Allow to set for a few hours before serving.