Romany Creams
Adapted from Tandy at Lavender and Lime
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Makes around 35-40 sandwich cookies (depending on size)
- 15g/0.5oz cocoa powder
- 125mls/4flozs. hot water
- 250g/8.8ozs. butter, softened
- 150g/5ozs. caster or superfine sugar
- 340g/12ozs. self raising flour plus extra flour for fork dipping
- 135g/4.8ozs. desiccated coconut
- Pinch of salt
- 400g/14ozs. milk chocolate (dairy milk actually does perfectly for this)
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
Step 1 - Preheat oven to 180C/350F and line four trays with parchment. Dissolve cocoa in hot water and set aside to cool. Cream the butter and sugar together until pale. Add the cocoa mixture and beat for 1 minute. Then fold in the flour, coconut and salt until just mixed (add more flour if it is too sticky).
Step 2 - Scoop out small balls the size of gobstoppers. Flatten with a fork dipped in flour and make sure they're spaced about 1.5 inches apart. Bake for 20 minutes or so-these are best when they are crisp and baking time depends on how big you've made them but make sure to bake them til crisp and slightly browned at the edges because they're best that way and don't really crisp up further on cooling that much. Cool for 5 minutes then place on cooling rack. Match similar sized halves together.
Step 3 - Melt the milk chocolate and coconut oil together until smooth. The trick to filling these is to set the chocolate until spreadable and not too runny. Allow to set in the fridge. Once they've set they can be kept at room temperature (as long as it isn't too hot where you are my darlings).