Neapolitan Cookies (Strawberry, Vanilla, and Chocolate)

This is a twist my XXX Strawberry Cookies. The twist is that I swapped the white chocolate chips for dark chocolate chips. Ingenious, ain't I?

Just like Neapolitan ice cream, this cookie combines three perfectly complementary flavors: strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate. (And who doesn't like chocolate-covered strawberries or chocolate fondue?)

The strawberries cooked with lemon juice and zest have a fresh, bright flavor that's the perfect background for the sweetness of the fresh and dehydrated strawberries. The dark chocolate chips provide richness and that little something extra--something exotic--to elevate these above the everyday.  The ground-up Nilla Wafers lend a light vanilla-y note. A final roll in turbinado sugar before baking gives the cookies a crunchy exterior that contrasts the moist, chewy interior.

Makes 3 dozen cookies. (To see this recipe in process, check out Picturing Neapolitan Cookies.)

Creamables	1 stick butter 1 cup light brown sugar
Wet Ingredients	1/2 cup sliced fresh strawberries 3 tablespoons milk 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 tablespoon white sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Dry Ingredients	2 cups oatmeal 1 cup finely ground Nilla Wafer cookies 3/4 cup flour 3/4 cup dehydrated strawberries 1/2 cup sliced fresh strawberries 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt
Topping	turbinado sugar

1. In a small saucepan, heat strawberries, milk, lemon juice, lemon zest, and white sugar over medium high heat. Stir with a wooden spoon, crushing the strawberries until the the mixture is smooth and evenly red.
2. Remove cranberry mixture from the heat and set aside to cool until Step 5.
3. Preheat oven to 350º.
4. In your Kitchen Aid or a large mixing bowl, cream together the creamables.
5. Add vanilla to the cooled strawberry mixture. Whisk together until smooth.
6. Add the combined wet ingredients to the creamables. Mix together until well incorporated.
7. In a large mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients. Using a spatula, fold together until evenly distributed.
8. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the combined creamables and wet ingredients. Mix until evenly combined.
9. Shape dough into balls--about 2 tablespoons each.
10. Roll each cookie dough ball in turbinado sugar.
    
11. Place the sugared dough balls about 2 inches apart on Silpat- or parchment paper-lined cookie sheets.
12. Bake at 350º for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown and the tops are firm to the touch. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let stand for 2 minutes. Then place cookies on wire racks to cool.

Comments

[Melissa]

I made these last night as test batch for a Mother's day present. I generally don't like white chocolate and much approve of the dark chips addition. I brought them into work to pass them around.

The girl in the office across from me rolled her chair back and moaned that they were the most amazing cookies ever in such a way as to be slightly obscene; my boss told me I had missed my calling as a baker; and the accountant told me they were the best cookies she'd ever had and then called her mom and told her about them.

So yeah - these are quite tasty. :o) Thanks for the recipe! It's delicious.

[Oatmeal Cookie Guy]

Hi, Melissa. Thanks! I pasted your comment on the main page as a "blog-love" entry. So glad your coworkers liked them. You should definitely try the dark chocolate version. :-)

[Carol]

Hi Greg, I made these the other day, what a delicious flavor and texture combination! I did have one issue, though - the dried strawberries I got were pretty big, and I had cut them up some, but apparently not enough. The cookies came out all different sizes and thickness - some flat, some lumpy, some in between. The dried strawberries didn't distribute evenly. Did you have any problem with this? Next time, I'll try cutting them up even more, and try to control how many get into each cookie. Any suggestions?

Another hit from OCG! My husband took some to work; one person asked for the recipe, and another, after taking a bite, said "I'm going to need another one of these."

[Oatmeal Cookie Guy]

Hi, Carol. The dehydrated strawberries I used were sliced pretty thin, so they kind of broke up evenly when I mixed them up in my Kitchen Aid. And so the cookies came out evenly formed every time. If your dehydrated strawberries are really chunky, go ahead and roughly chop them--or crush them a little in your hands--so that they distribute evenly in the dough when you mix.

I'm so glad these guys were a hit with your husband's coworkers. Another success for the OCG's bring-in-ables?