In the land of cookie sandwiches there are three distinct sizes: the little debbie, the tea time and the fat kid. These, my friends, are the fat kid.
This recipe combines two of my favorite things: Chewy ginger cookies and sweet citrus frosting. Thought they don’t fit my current dairy-free bill, I made them a while back for a party I attended and were mostly devoured by fellow guests. I made some with modest amounts of frosting and others with obscene amounts. Guess which ones went first? OBSCENE. Fat kids are popular, what can I say?
Not only are these cookie sandwiches fun to look at, they’re also quite delectable. Fluffy orange-flavored buttercream makes the perfect glue between two chewy ginger cookies. The flavor combo just works. Plus, they’re quite simple to throw together, requiring just one bowl and about 30 minutes to prepare. This is a the kind of party favor I can get behind.
If you’re not a fan of the cookie sandwich, simply top each single cookie with a touch of the frosting. Or, if frosting makes you gag simply opt out of it all together (who ARE you?). The cookies themselves are pure perfection on their own.
- ½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 medium egg
- scant ¼ cup molasses
- scant 1½ cups unbleached all purpose flour
- pinch salt
- 1½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ea. ground cinnamon and ginger
- Orange Buttercream
- ½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
- 2½ – 3 cups powdered sugar
- zest of 1 orange
- 2-3 Tbsp orange juice
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a bowl cream butter. Then add sugar and egg and mix again. Add molasses and mix until well combined.
- Add flour, salt, baking soda and spices to a sifter and gradually sift over wet ingredients while mixing. Beat until well combined, scraping side as needed.
- Chill dough for 10-15 minutes while oven continues to preheat.
- Scoop rounded 1 Tablespoon balls of dough onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet – press down slightly with your finger to flatten. (Rolling in sugar is optional, but not necessary.)
- Bake for 9-11 minutes, being careful not to over bake. Cook completely on a cooling rack and then prepare buttercream by creaming butter and zest, then adding in powdered sugar in ½ cup measurements. Thin out to desired consistency with orange juice. Mix until well combined and fluffy, scraping down sides as needed.
- Once cookies are cooled, place a generous amount of buttercream on the bottom of half the cookies and top with the other half (you will have leftover frosting). Store in an airtight container for up to a few days. However, they’re best when served fresh.
Ashley January 12, 2013 at 9:36 am
Just love that last hand holding photo! The contrast in flavors sounds perfect!
Averie @ Averie Cooks January 12, 2013 at 1:20 pm
Dana they look amazing and last night I *almost* made ginger/molasses cookies because I just had a craving but went with something else. Now I am regretting it that I see these. I want them! They flavors, the contrast, the soft and chewy…oh yes!
Leisa @ Day by Day January 12, 2013 at 2:09 pm
Wow… just wow. These look so good I can almost taste them! Two of my favorite flavors–organe and ginger…. mmmmmmm!
Leisa January 12, 2013 at 2:10 pm
*orange* oops! A bit of dyslexia is coming through today ;-)
Kelli H (Made in Sonoma) January 12, 2013 at 3:41 pm
DANA! These seriously look AMAZING!
Dana January 12, 2013 at 5:31 pm
haha, thanks Kelli! They were!
britainknee January 12, 2013 at 8:31 pm
My favorite desserts include citrus, and orange buttercream sounds incredible!
Genevieve January 13, 2013 at 1:04 am
Oh MY! These look heavenly. I will definitely be making these sometime. I’m pinning them right now.
Genevieve
cindy January 13, 2013 at 9:24 am
spicy ginger goods + citrus is one of my favorite (and underrated, imo) combinations…ever. plus, who can resist a sandwich cookie? lovely!
Kathryn January 13, 2013 at 10:21 am
Ginger & orange = perfection. I want one of those fat kid cookie sandwiches so badly!
Christina January 13, 2013 at 11:15 am
This looks amazing!
I’ve made a few of your recipes before, and because they’ve always turned out, I nominated you for a Super Sweet Blogging Award. The rules are here: http://xtinaluvspink.wordpress.com/2013/01/13/and-the-award-goes-to/ I hope you choose to participate. Happy baking!
Dina January 13, 2013 at 11:18 am
great flavor combo!
Laura Dembowski January 13, 2013 at 3:21 pm
OMG! Those sound amazing! Orange and gingerbread are such a great combo! And everything is better with frosting :)
Sarah January 13, 2013 at 5:55 pm
What a great combo! These look lovely!
MariJean January 13, 2013 at 10:36 pm
There’s just something about ginger cookies. They are perfect with a cup of tea. (Of course, they’d probably be best tea sized, though fat kid would just go perfectly with a giant cup of tea! ;)
What a delectable twist! Orange buttercream…I never would’ve thought of that! Well done.
MJ
Monique @ Ambitious Kitchen January 14, 2013 at 9:28 pm
Orange buttercream! Omg I’m in love.
natalie@thesweetslife January 15, 2013 at 1:17 pm
hmm i have some orange COLORED buttercream in my freezer…i think i need to add some orange flavoring to it and make these…i am ginger obsessed!
Rachel January 16, 2013 at 1:06 pm
I downloaded the pdf 7 ingredients or less, looks amazing but unfortuntley the writing is un-readable!
john January 16, 2013 at 1:48 pm
Hi Rachel! I just sent you an email to see what the issue might be. I can’t notice anything wrong with the pdf, but I’m happy to look into it.
Thanks for the notice!
Elizabeth January 19, 2013 at 9:46 pm
The orange and ginger combo is so intriguing!
Lindsay January 30, 2013 at 5:49 am
How many cookies does this recipe make?
Dana January 30, 2013 at 11:16 am
My batch made 14 individual cookies, so 7 sandwiches. But I made them quite large. If you shrink the size down it can yield closer to 2 dozen. Just watch your cooking time. Hope that helps!
melissa February 2, 2013 at 10:36 am
I made these last night, and they were AHmazing! The cookies were a perfect chewy texture, and I love how the buttercream dried nicely after a while. The orange flavor was really unique, and all my party guests loved them. Thanks for a great recipe!
Dana February 2, 2013 at 3:50 pm
Lovely! So glad they turned out well :D
susi February 3, 2013 at 8:41 am
This grown up fat kid can’t wait to make them!!
Jasmin March 14, 2013 at 11:58 am
Can you make this vegan?