I’m a HUGE fan of any holiday that calls for a celebration, especially if it requires dressing up and copious amounts of food. As the month of October settles in, the countdown to Halloween has officially started.

I remember the days of trick-or-treating as a child growing up in Montreal. My sister and I would put together makeshift costumes, which often meant cutting out eyeholes out of old white sheet trying to look scary. We used pillowcases instead of candy bags back then, and would head off on a door-to-door candy quest, hoarding as many sugar-infested goodies we could get our hands on.

Now that I have children of my own, we carve pumpkins, get costumes ready and we go trick-or-treating. After all this time, nothing has changed! I am fortunate to re-live the Halloween excitement through my children’s eyes.

Our neighborhood Halloween party has become somewhat of a tradition in the last few years, where princesses, pirates, ghosts, and wizards roam the playground. While the children parade around in their costumes, you can really feel the sense of pride each of them has in their individuality. Parents bring food and take part in the action, making it the perfect time for the community to come together for a fun-filled few hours.

In honor of Halloween, I’m serving up double chocolate Bat-shaped cookies. Feel free to use any shape you like if you don’t find a bat-shaped cutter. Fabulous on their own or with a cold glass of milk, these are rich, decadent, and completely addictive – a chocolate lover’s dream. You’ll be making these every Halloween and beyond!

The shortbread cookie in this recipe is very similar to the Homemade Oreos I posted a while back. I have altered the ingredients and added an egg yolk for a bit more structure. This results in a sturdier dough which is more user friendly and a lot less fragile than the in the Oreo.

Double Chocolate Bat Sandwich Cookies

Makes 20 to 24 sandwich cookies

Ingredients for the chocolate shortbread cookie: (makes 40-48 cookes)

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 8 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or the seeds of half a vanilla pod

 Directions:

Place the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. Whisk and set aside.

Put butter in a large bowl. With a standing or hand-held electric mixer, mix butter on low speed until smooth.

Add the sugar, and mix for about two minutes until fluffy. Add the egg yolk and vanilla, mix. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure all the ingredients have been incorporated.

Add half the cocoa/flour mixture to the butter, and mix on low speed for about thirty seconds. Repeat with the remaining cocoa/flour mixture until dough comes together (do not over mix).

Place the dough on your work surface, bring it together, and form a block. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until firm, about an hour. Note, you can refrigerate the dough for up to two days or freeze for a month.

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees C (350 F) and place the rack in the middle of the oven.

Line a large cookie sheet pan with parchment paper.

Remove the dough from the fridge. If the dough is too cold to handle, let it sit at room temperature for a while until it softens slightly.

Dust your work surface with a bit of flour. Divide your dough in half, and roll the first half out until it is approximately ¼ inch thick. Cut out desired shapes and transfer onto baking sheet and bake for 12 – 14 minutes or until the cookies are dry on top and cooked through. Repeat with the remaining half of your dough. Let the cookies cool completely before you fill them with the ganache.

Ingredients for the chocolate ganache filling:

• 6 ounces good quality dark chocolate (minimum 52% to 70% cocoa solids), finely chopped
• 3 ounces good quality milk chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 cup of whipping cream

*you can substitute the milk chocolate with dark chocolate if you prefer a richer filling

Directions:

Place dark and milk chocolate in a medium bowl.

Heat cream until very hot, immediately before the boiling point.

Pour the hot cream onto the chocolate. Let stand for 1-2 minutes. Stir mixture until all the chocolate has been melted and has a glossy consistency.

Refrigerate the chocolate ganache filling for a few hours until it t develops a thick, spreadable consistency.

The cookie:

Spread (or pipe) one tablespoon of filling evenly on a one cookie, close with a second cookie to form a sandwich.

Repeat with the remaining cookies.

These can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to five days (if they last that long!).

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