Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

Every now and then I make a dessert so delicious that I dream about it, long for it, and just want to eat it every day. And I almost regret that I ever made it for fear that it will be the death of my self control. These chocolate sandwich cookies are one of those things. These are chocolate cookies made out of cake mix that are used to make a sandwich with some cream cheese frosting. And they are amazing!

They are similar in concept to an Oreo cookie, but about 1,000 times more delicious. They are what Oreos wish they tasted like. My mama spoiled me with too many yummy homemade cookies for me to ever really enjoy store-bought cookies so I have never been a huge fan of Oreos. But these homemade chocolate sandwich cookies (mostly homemade anyway!) are right up my alley.

I made these when I was staying with my parents before my husband and I moved into our new house a few months ago. I found the recipe while flipping through a Paula Deen cookbook my mom had. There were a ton of things in that cookbook I would love to make, but these cookies just screamed, “make me!”

By using cake mix, these were really easy to make. If you wanted to go totally homemade you could even use your favorite from scratch chocolate cookie recipe. The cream cheese frosting is also really easy to make, but if you want to go totally not from scratch to save a little more time, I suppose you could even use canned cream cheese frosting. However you choose to do it, you are going to end up with a cute, fun, and totally delicious dessert that looks pretty impressive. Go you!

These chocolate sandwich cookies would be perfect for a summer pot luck or any get together where food will be consumed. Everyone will love them, plus sharing them is the only way it is humanly possible to control how many you eat. Trust me.

Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
Ingredients:
1 (18.5 oz) package devil's food cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup canola oil
4 oz reduced fat cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, eggs, and oil.  Beat with an electric mixer at low speed until completely combined.  The batter will be very stiff.  Roll batter into 1-inch balls.
Place 1 inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets and flatten slightly with fingertips.  Bake 8-10 minutes, until a slight indention remains when lightly touched.  Remove immediately from the cookie sheets with a spatula and cool on wire racks.
In a small mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and butter until completely blended.  Gradually add the sugar and vanilla and mix at low speed until the icing is smooth.  Add additional powdered sugar if need to thicken. 
Spread icing on half the cookies and top with the remaining cookies.  Store in the refrigerator.
Makes about 2 dozen cookies.


Recipe adapted from Paula Deen and Friends