These are not your traditional graham cracker and marshmallow sandwich cookies coated in chocolate. You know the ones you may have had packed in your lunches or picked up for an end of day or for a long drive sustenance snack at the local convenience store. Rather the Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Moon Pie is a celestial version, one having a gravitational pull so powerful you will not be able to walk away from them (unlike those moon pies that always seem to be positioned in very close proximity to a store's cash register).
I don't think I knew what a moon pie was until I moved to the South. We didn't have them in the house I grew up in, instead we had the marshmallowy centered chocolate Hostess cupcakes which as a kid I usually deconstructed (I only liked the marshmallow filling and the chocolate frosting). In spite of my early on pick apart tendencies, there is nothing about this moon pie I would leave behind. On their own the cookies and the marshmallow filling are each delicious, but when sandwiched together they are transformed into irresistible, crunchy, gooey bites of goodness.
If there was ever a cookie to exemplify why more is almost always better, this would be the one. And forget having to choose quality over quantity or vice versa, this Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Moon Pie will give you both. And every now and then it is nice to 'have your cookie and be able to eat it too'.
Dried cherries, toasted pecans and semi-sweet chocolate chips. The perfect trifecta all in one cookie. Butter, dark brown sugar, oatmeal, a large egg, flour, baking powder, baking soda, Kosher salt and vanilla complete the list of ingredients for the cookie portion of the moon pie.
The batter assembly begins with a standing mixer using a paddle attachment and ends with a wooden spoon. The unsalted butter and dark brown sugar are mixed until light and fluffy. The egg and vanilla are added next and mixed until fully incorporated. All of the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, Kosher salt) are first combined in a bowl and whisked together before they are slowly added to the butter/sugar/egg mixture. Once incorporated, the chocolate chips, oatmeal, dried cherries and toasted pecans are stirred in using a wooden spoon. The dough will be on the thick side.
Using a one ounce or approximately one inch in diameter ice cream scoop, the dough is formed into round balls. The batter yielded approximately 32 cookies (which will give you 16 moon pies). Before the cookies are placed in a preheated 350 degree oven, the tops are lightly pressed down so each dough ball is approximately 1/2 inch thick.
On parchment paper lined cookie sheets the cookies are baked for 16-18 minutes (rotate the cookie sheet halfway through the baking). You definitely do not want to over bake these cookies. I took mine out of the oven at 17 minutes, but next time will take them out at after 16 minutes only because I like a little more chewiness (versus crispness) to my cookie. Removing the baked cookies from the cookie sheet and placing them on a rack to cool will add to a more chewy texture. Leaving them to cool on the cookie sheet will result in a slightly more crispy cookie.
The original recipe for these moon pies called for sandwiching the cookies with only marshmallow fluff. Another food blogger who made these cookies shared a marshmallow creme recipe that is not only insanely delicious, it makes for a less messy, easier to eat cookie. If you are someone who thinks the cream filling in an Oreo is delicious, you will be beside yourself when you taste this marshmallow creme. Unsalted butter, confectionary sugar, marshmallow fluff and some vanilla come together to make a marshmallow creme having the most perfect consistency and taste.
Using either a pastry bag fitted with a plain round pastry tube or a large plastic ziplock type bag cut at one of the corners will work. You want enough of the marshmallow creme on the underside of one of the cookies so that when you place another cookie on top, you will still see the creme when you sandwich the cookies together, but not so much that the creme oozes out too much. I know I am not giving you much of a technical description of how much marshmallow creme you need for these moon pies. It is a little more art than science, a little trial and error, and alot of personal preference.
It is possible to make these cookies even more decadent by drizzling a chocolate glaze over them or serving them with a bowl of the warm glaze. The ingredients and directions for the glaze are provided below. I like the idea of serving them with a bowl of the warm glaze and wouldn't rule out drizzling a chocolate glaze on them, but honestly they are really, really good without the added chocolate (and this is coming from someone who doesn't necessarily below there is such a thing as too much chocolate).
I wrapped each of these cookies in a cellophane bag as I was giving them away. If serving them to family and friends, I would have placed them in a sealed tin until I was ready to serve them (recommend baking them the day of or day before serving). I have shared quite a few cookie recipes on the blog and have my own personal top ten favorites. The Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Moon Pie just bumped another cookie out. I think this one might just be one of my top five favorites. They are 'over the moon' that good.
Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Moon Pies (Chocolate-Oatmeal Moon Pies (cookies) inspired by a recipe from New Orleans chef Stephen Stryjewski and shared in Bon Appetit; filling and chocolate glaze inspired by recipe from food blogger Annie's Eats)
Ingredients
Cookie
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup dried tart cherries, chopped
1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup (12 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar, packed
1 large egg, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Filling
3/4 cup (12 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups confectionary sugar, sifted
6 ounces marshmallow fluff
2 teaspoons vanilla
Chocolate Glaze/Sauce
4 ounces semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
Pinch of sea salt
Directions
Cookies
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and Kosher salt in a medium sized bowl. Whisk to combine and set aside.
4. Combine oatmeal, dried cherries, pecans and chocolate chips in a medium sized bowl. Stir to combine and set aside.
5. In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and dark brown sugar until light and fluffy (approximately 2 minutes).
6. Blend in egg and vanilla until incorporated.
7. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated.
8. Add the oatmeal, cherries, pecans and chocolate chips stirring with a wooden spoon until combined.
9. Using a 1 ounce or 1 inch in diameter ice cream scoop, scoop to shape dough balls. On a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, place dough balls approximately 2-3 inches apart (about 10 cookies per sheet). Press dough balls down until cookies are approximately 1/2 inch thick.
10. Bake cookies for 16-18 minutes, rotating cookie sheet halfway through. Place baked cookies on a rack and cool completely.
Filling and Assembly
1. Place unsalted butter in a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat at medium speed until light and fluffy (approximately 2-3 minutes).
2. Add confectionary sugar and beat until it is fully incorporated.
3. Beat in marshmallow fluff and vanilla until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes).
4. Using a pastry bag fitted with a plain round tip, pipe marshmallow cream on the bottom/flat side of half of the cookies.
5. Find a cookie of matching size and sandwich the two cookies together, pushing until marshmallow cream reaches the edges of the cookies.
Chocolate Glaze/Sauce
1. Place chopped chocolate in a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
2. Heat cream over medium heat until it reaches a simmer. Remove from heat and pour over chocolate. Let stand 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Whisk until a smooth ganache has formed.
4. Whisk in butter and sea salt until fully incorporated.
5. Drizzle glaze over cookies and place in refrigerator to set. Or serve the cookies with the warm sauce for dipping.
