Name: Homemade Ringo Cookies (Cocoa and Vanilla Sandwich Cookies)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 20
Ingredients: 250 g of All Purpose Flour; 140 g of Potato Starch; 160 g of Butter; 130 g of Sugar; 2 Eggs; 15 g of Unsweetened Cocoa Powder; 100 g of Butter; 160 g of Powdered Sugar; Mezza of Vanilla Beans

As kids we ate them after pulling the two halves apart and licking off the cream; as grown-ups we tend to hold back a little more (but not too much): we’re talking about the legendary, timeless Ringo Cookies, Italian sandwich cookies with one plain and one cocoa half. Not everyone knows, though, that you can make them at home, to the great delight of the whole family, simply starting from a Shortcrust Pastry dough, half of it with cocoa, and making a Special Buttercream for the filling.

Ringo are the best-loved sandwich cookies, second to none, and making them at home is a really great idea, especially if you have kids. Homemade Ringo are as good as the originals and keep in a cookie tin for up to a week. Get a 3 cm (1 1/4 inch) round cutter, or simply an espresso cup, and get ready to make your own Homemade Ringo Cookies.

Among our other Cookie Recipes, we suggest you try the legendary Butter Torcetti, the eye-catching Button Cookies or the Snowball Cookies, which are also perfect as a gift.

Method

To make the Homemade Ringo Cookies, start with the shortcrust pastry. In a bowl, combine the flour, potato starch, diced butter and eggs, and knead until you have a smooth dough that isn’t sticky. Shape it into a ball, divide it in half and wrap one half in plastic wrap. Add the cocoa to the other half and knead again.

After carefully kneading the chocolate shortcrust, cover both doughs with plastic wrap and chill them in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Then roll out the two blocks of dough, one at a time, with a rolling pin on a floured work surface. The dough should be 5 mm (1/4 inch) thick. Cut out rounds with a 4 cm (1 1/2 inch) cutter and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You should end up with the same number of light and dark rounds. Bake them, one baking sheet at a time, in a preheated oven at 180 °C (350 °F) for about 13 minutes. Take them out of the oven and let them cool. In a bowl, beat the butter with the sugar and the vanilla seeds.

Once you have a silky cream, pair a dark round with a light one, joining them with a little buttercream. Press lightly so they stick together. Continue this way until you have used up all the ingredients.