Chocolate-Mint Nightcaps

By norsegal8

These cookies are made as simple drop cookies with a batter that spread and bakes to wafer thinness. When you are ready to serve, the delicate cookies are sandwiched with thick, unquestionably chocolaty, subtly, minty ganache and topped with a ganache spiral, the eponymous "nightcap".

Ingredients

• THE GANACHE
• 12 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
• THE COOKIES
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation

Step 1

THE GANACHE
Put the chocolate in a bowl and keep close at hand. Bring the cream and the mint to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. As soon as the cream reaches the boil, pour it through a medium-gauge strainer onto the chocolate; discard the mint. Whisk the ganache until it is smooth and then pour it out onto a clean jelly roll pan. Spread the chocolate to the edges of the pan with a rubber spatula and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Spreading the chocolate in a thin layer hastens its chilling. The ganache can be made a few days ahead and stored, covered in the refrigerator. If, when you are ready to use the ganache, it has chilled too much and is unworkable, just let it warm a bit at room temperature – it will be shiny and easily spreadable, the texture you want, in a few minutes.

THE COOKIES
Set one oven rack in the center position and the other at the top and preheat the oven to 300°F. Line 4 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt onto a sheet of waxed paper and reserve.
Beat the butter and sugar for 2 minutes at medium speed in a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, scrape down the bowl, increase the speed to high and beat 1 minute more, until the mixture is pale and creamy. With the mixer at medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating until each egg is fully incorporated and scraping down the paddle and sides as needed. Add the vanilla and beat for 30 seconds, then add the dry ingredients, mixing just 30 seconds more. Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to finish mixing in the dry ingredients .

BAKING THE COOKIES
Drop a heaping teaspoonful of batter for each cookie onto the parchment-lined baking sheets, making 12 cookies per sheet and leaving room between each cookie for spreading. Bake the cookies, two sheets at a time, for 7 to 8 minutes, or until the cookies are just set, rotating the cookie sheets top to bottom and front to back after 3 minutes. Cool on baking sheets. Repeat with the remaining sheets of cookies. When completely cool, lift the cookies off of the parchment and store in an airtight container at room temperature until ready to assemble.

ASSEMBLING THE NIGHTCAPS
To construct the nightcaps, spoon the ganache into a pastry bag fitted with a plain ¼-inch tip. Pipe about 1 tablespoon of ganache onto the tops of 24 of the cookies. Center 24 more cookies (domed side up) on the ganache and press them into place to make neat sandwiches. To form the “nightcap”, decorate the top of each sandwich by piping about a teaspoonful of ganache in a small circle that spirals upward on itself . Serve the cookies immediately.