Chocolate Stuffed Strawberry Sugar Cookies

Perfection is these soft and chewy sugar cookies stuffed with a dark chocolate ganache and topped with a burst of freeze-dried strawberries. Love is in the air… love for the timeless combination of chocolate and strawberry, that is! Also, my love of stuffed cookies is seemingly endless (am I the only one that finds a […]

The post Chocolate Stuffed Strawberry Sugar Cookies first appeared on Love and Olive Oil.

Perfection is these soft and chewy sugar cookies stuffed with a dark chocolate ganache and topped with a burst of freeze-dried strawberries.

Love is in the air… love for the timeless combination of chocolate and strawberry, that is! Also, my love of stuffed cookies is seemingly endless (am I the only one that finds a plain, not-stuffed cookie so incredibly boring now?)

Chocolate Stuffed Strawberry Sugar Cookies on a wire rack, raw chocolate and freeze dried strawberries scattered on the side

Yes I realize I made the perfect Valentine’s day cookies in the middle of summer but, you know what? My love of chocolate and strawberry lasts all year round.

My first test run of these cookies resulted in two versions, one with the ground up freeze-dried strawberries mixed into the dough, and the other with plain dough and a coating of crushed berry powder before baking.

While the strawberry flavor was lovely on both versions, the strawberry-in-the-dough batch turned a not-so-enticing mauve color when baked. Nothing like the pretty pastel pink I envisioned. But such is life when you’re using natural colorings.

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Stuffed Cherry Amaretti Cookies

These soft and chewy, marzipan-like cookies are stuffed with luscious amarena cherries for a sweet surprise. Cherry and almond are a truly lovely flavor combination, which makes the dark amarena cherries the perfect filling for these soft Italian amaretti cookies. Lately I’ve been… well, languishing. As you may very well have noticed by the fact […]

The post Stuffed Cherry Amaretti Cookies first appeared on Love and Olive Oil.

These soft and chewy, marzipan-like cookies are stuffed with luscious amarena cherries for a sweet surprise.

Cherry and almond are a truly lovely flavor combination, which makes the dark amarena cherries the perfect filling for these soft Italian amaretti cookies.

Wire rack with rows of amaretti cookies, one cookie cut in half to show the amarena cherry hidden inside.

Lately I’ve been… well, languishing. As you may very well have noticed by the fact that new recipes have been less than abundant around these parts. (Can you believe there was a time I used to post 3 times a week? The past few years I thought I was easing up by doing two. But lately… well, if I can manage one a week that’s an achievement. 2 or 3  a month is becoming the new normal.)

It’s not that I am not inspired. I’ve actually got dozens of ideas for new recipes in my draft calendar, just no actual motivation to put down my latest book and make anything.

After yet another recipe failure quashed my momentum and vanquished my motivation, leaving me without anything to post for another week… I knew I needed something quick and straightforward that would work on the first try, one that didn’t need hours of prep or planning or fancy ingredients.

Scattered cookies on a white background, one cut in half to show the cherry filling.

Is it a surprise that I ended up making another variety of my favorite cookie: the amaretti (they’re also one of your favorites too, made clear by the fact that at least a few of the flavors typically hovering the top 10 at any given time). This time with a cherry stuffed inside.

Tell me though… at what point am I legally required to rename this blog Love & Amaretti? When the amaretti recipes outnumber the olive oil ones? Because at this point I’ve done flavored and swirled and stuffed. What’s next, amaretti sandwiched or thumbprinted or super-sized and layered into a cake? (Actually, I kind of love that idea.)

If keeping up with a regular posting schedule means unlimited variations of amaretti and coffee cake in lieu of brand new recipes, I’m cool with that. Whatever it takes to get me out of this funk and back into the swing of things.

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Ganache-Stuffed Cosmic Brownie Cookies

Don’t be fooled by their cheerful exterior, because these chocolate brownie cookies have a dark secret: a hidden core of rich and creamy chocolate ganache. Cosmic brownies: cookie-fied! Your favorite nostalgic childhood treat is now in cookie form, with the traditional milk chocolate ganache topping stuffed inside a chewy brownie cookie. Another day, another stuffed […]

The post Ganache-Stuffed Cosmic Brownie Cookies first appeared on Love and Olive Oil.

Don’t be fooled by their cheerful exterior, because these chocolate brownie cookies have a dark secret: a hidden core of rich and creamy chocolate ganache.

Cosmic brownies: cookie-fied! Your favorite nostalgic childhood treat is now in cookie form, with the traditional milk chocolate ganache topping stuffed inside a chewy brownie cookie.

Cooling rack with Ganache-Stuffed Cosmic Brownie Cookies, one cut in half to show filling, and a small glass milk bottle

Another day, another stuffed cookie recipe, and these ganache-stuffed brownie cookies (aka “Cosmic” brownie cookies) are fan-freaking-tastic.

I mean, the brownie cookie alone would be worth sharing, with its perfectly crinkly exterior and rich, chocolatey flavor. But with the hidden ganache filling? Well, these cookies take the cake.

The cheerful sprinkles on top only add to the appeal (it’s the truth that rainbow sprinkles make everything better).

Single chocolate brownie cookie on a gray background with brightly colored rainbow and metallic sprinkles

I originally set out to recreate my Out of This World Brownies, aka knock-off Cosmic Brownies, in cookie form.

I debated between a stuffed cookie or a sandwich cookie, but you all know how much I love my stuffed cookies, so I really didn’t debate long (and really, if you think about it, a stuffed cookie is just a one-piece-sandwich-cookie so… it’s a win win all around).

And folks… this recipe really is a winner. I’m beyond thrilled with how these came out and strongly (strongly) encourage you to make them ASAP.

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Stuffed Hazelnut Amaretti Cookies

These chewy hazelnut amaretti cookies have a hidden surprise inside: a core of molten Nutella. Swapping hazelnut flour for almond flour in my soft amaretti cookie recipe results in a chewy, nutty cookie that’s downright delightful and naturally gluten free. The nugget of molten hazelnut spread in the middle makes it over the top delicious! […]

These chewy hazelnut amaretti cookies have a hidden surprise inside: a core of molten Nutella.

Swapping hazelnut flour for almond flour in my soft amaretti cookie recipe results in a chewy, nutty cookie that’s downright delightful and naturally gluten free. The nugget of molten hazelnut spread in the middle makes it over the top delicious!

Stuffed Hazelnut Amaretti Cookies on a wire rack, bowl of hazelnuts and nutella on the side

I’ve thoroughly explored the options for flavored amaretti, from chocolate to raspberry to colorful confetti sprinkles, but this is the first time I’ve attempted stuffing them.

I’d actually tested a hazelnut amaretti some time ago, but shelved the idea, planning to revisit it during the holidays. And in an attempt to do something a bit different with it instead of just swapping out the nut flour (otherwise this recipe is virtually identical to all my other amaretti), I decided to combine my love of amaretti with my obsession with stuffing stuff inside cookies.

The result?

Simply magical.

Closeup of a Hazelnut Amaretti Cookie with a bite, showing the Nutella filling inside

The hazelnut flour has a much stronger flavor than almond, nutty and toasty and robust, with just a hint of almond serving as a fragrant foundation that rounds out the flavor profile quite nicely.

The texture is similar to that of the almond amaretti, although depending on the coarseness of your hazelnut flour you may end up with a softer, more open crumb which I found quite lovely.

The bottoms bake up slightly crispy (be sure to use a double layer of cookie sheets which helps insulate the bottoms and prevents them from getting too dark), with a chewy outside and a marzipan-like inside, and a core of molten Nutella hidden inside.

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Ganache-Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cue cookie craving: with crisp edges, chewy centers, and a hidden pocket of rich chocolate ganache baked right in the middle, you should probably go make some, like, now. If you thought classic chocolate chip cookies couldn’t get any more perfect, think again! I’ve gone and stuffed them with chocolate ganache and the results are […]

Cue cookie craving: with crisp edges, chewy centers, and a hidden pocket of rich chocolate ganache baked right in the middle, you should probably go make some, like, now.

If you thought classic chocolate chip cookies couldn’t get any more perfect, think again! I’ve gone and stuffed them with chocolate ganache and the results are mind-blowing (and tongue-pleasing).

Ganache-Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies on a wire rack with a glass milk bottle

I’m seriously obsessed with stuffed cookies… if you hadn’t already noticed.

These particular stuffed cookies may not be quite as an unusual flavor combination as some of my others (ahem, black sesame and matcha) but they are surely not your typical chocolate chip cookie.

Might I suggest serving these without mentioning what’s inside; your friends will think they’re biting into what looks like the most perfect chocolate chip cookie on earth (the flake sea salt on top is dazzling enough as is), but once they hit that pocket of rich ganache, well, the surprised and delighted look on their face is priceless.

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Black Sesame-Stuffed Matcha Sugar Cookies

Ultra soft matcha infused sugar cookies with an unexpected surprise inside: a pocket of sweetened black sesame paste for a savory richness that you’ll absolutely adore. The black sesame proves to be a perfect foil to the saccharine sweetness of the sugar cookie: it’s nutty and sweet, but also slightly savory at the same time […]

Ultra soft matcha infused sugar cookies with an unexpected surprise inside: a pocket of sweetened black sesame paste for a savory richness that you’ll absolutely adore.

The black sesame proves to be a perfect foil to the saccharine sweetness of the sugar cookie: it’s nutty and sweet, but also slightly savory at the same time (and the result is downright amazing.)

Stack of Black Sesame-Stuffed Matcha Sugar Cookies, with bowls of matcha powder and black sesame seeds

This isn’t the first time I’ve combined matcha and black sesame.

And it most certainly won’t be the last. ?

I mean, these two ingredients were made for each other, united with a bit of sugar into a practically perfect union. The subtle grassiness of the matcha and the roasted nuttiness of the black sesame is a unique flavor combination that is sure to raise some eyebrows, but trust me on this one: it works.

Overhead shot with a cooling rack with rows of matcha sugar cookies, bowls of matcha powder and black sesame seeds.

I played around with a few different filling options before settling on black sesame, including raspberry jam and a raspberry cream cheese filling, plain white chocolate, as well as 3 different black sesame mixtures.

While the raspberry jam filling was quite tasty (I didn’t care for the cream cheese), I ultimately felt the raspberry was too strong a flavor that overpowered the matcha.

The black sesame, on the other hand, complemented the matcha perfectly without overpowering it. Perfection!

(The white chocolate was probably my second favorite but considering I already did that in a stuffed chocolate cookie I decided I needed some variety).

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