Red Velvet Oreos

Is there a cookie in the world that is more universally loved than the oreo?  I dare you to find one.  So what if you combined the beloved oreo with a classic flavor combination - red velvet?  You will end up with one awesome cookie.

I honestly don't know where I thought of this.  I'd been wanting to make red velvet cookies, but most of the recipes started with a box of cake mix, and I don't really like to bake out of the box.  So I was just driving down the road, thinking about cooking and food (as usual), and the idea hit me like a ton of bricks.  Red.  Velvet.  Oreos.  With cream cheese filling, of course.  To me, red velvet is characterized by a light chocolate taste, a bit of tang/sourness from buttermilk, and of course the red color.  I've had a recipe for homemade oreos saved for months, so I figured I could just adapt it to my liking.  Of course I added some red food coloring and decreased the chocolate, but I was stumped a bit when it came to the buttermilk.  Should I just add vinegar?  Add a few tablespoons of buttermilk and hope it didn't affect the chemistry of the cookie?  And then I had another idea:  buttermilk powder.  Many people keep it on hand so they don't have to worry about buttermilk going bad.  Just like powdered milk, you just add water to the powder.  But since powdered milk is often used in baked goods, I figures why not try buttermilk powder?  And it worked!  These cookies are slightly chocolately with that characteristic buttermilky tang.  Fill them with cream cheese icing and you have one addicting cookie.

Now that the Super Bowl is over and it's time to start thinking about Valentine's Day, you should definitely consider these cookies as a strong possibility for a festive dessert.  They would be so fun to send in with you child to school, or just for dessert or a special snack.  They are literally mixed up in minutes, and before you know it you'll be snacking on your new favorite cookie.


These came out a little bit larger than I'd expected, so I've adjusted the instructions below.  I found buttermilk powder at my local Super Target, but I'm sure it's also available at most well-stocked grocery stores.

Red Velvet Oreos
inspired by Retro Desserts, via Annie's Eats and Smitten Kitchen

For the cookies:

• 1 1/4cups all-purpose flour
•  5 Tbs unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder
• 3 Tbs buttermilk powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 10 Tbs (1¼ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 - 2 tsp red food coloring
• 1 large egg

For the filling:

• 4 tbsp. (¼ cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3 oz. cream cheese, chilled
• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.

In a food processor or the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the flour, cocoa powder, buttermilk powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar.  Pulse a few times to combine.  Cut the butter into tablespoon size pieces, and add them to the bowl and pulse or mix briefly to incorporate.  In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg and stir in the food coloring. Pour into the mixture and pulse or mix until a cohesive mass forms.

Scoop about 2 teaspoons of batter onto the baking sheet.  Continue scooping, spacing the dough balls a couple of inches apart.  With moistened fingers, gently press down on the dough balls to flatten slightly.  Bake for 9-11 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking.  Cool the cookies completely on the baking sheet. 

To make the filling, combine the butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer.  Beat on medium-high speed until smooth.  Add the confectioners’ sugar and salt to the bowl and mix on low speed just until incorporated, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.  

To assemble the cookies, match them up by size.  Use a pastry bag fitted with a  round tip to pipe a swirl of filling onto the flat side of one cookie of each pair.  Sandwich together with the remaining cookie and press down so that the filling reaches the edges.