Yesterday was T’s birthday and T doesn’t enjoy sweets as much as I do (or hardly at all.)  Because of this, we usually don’t do a cake for his birthday or anything like that, but this year, my mom had a great idea to make moon pies.  Unless you have been without cable and internet for the past several weeks, you know the Eclipse of the Century will occur tomorrow.  This is the first time in 38 years that the US mainland will see a total solar eclipse – pretty cool!  So, my mom made these moon pies, and let me just tell you – they were DELICIOUS!  T even said he really liked them (and as I mentioned previously, he doesn’t like sweets.)  If you aren’t able to make these for the eclipse tomorrow, I would definitely keep this recipe handy for when you need to bring a dessert to a party.

Magical Moon Pies

Shortbread Cookies

• 1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 teaspoon salt

Pie Assembly

• 2 cups marshmallow spread
• 1 tablespoon orange zest

Chocolate Glaze

• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (mom used Ghirardelli)
• 1/2 cup refined coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons agave or corn syrup

Directions

Shortbread Cookies
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer add butter and sugar and mix until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and mix to combine.
2. In a large bowl, add flour, graham cracker crumbs and salt and whisk to combine. Add the flour mixture gradually to the creamed butter and mix just until a dough forms. Form the dough into 1 1/2-inch log, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least one hour.
3. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
4. Remove dough from refrigerator and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices. Place on baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven to a baking rack and allow to cool completely.

Filling
1. In a medium bowl, add the marshmallow spread and orange zest.
2. Transfer marshmallow mixture to a piping bag or large ziptop bag. Pipe 1 tablespoon of filling in the center of cookie. Top with a second cookie and lightly press to spread to edges. Repeat with remaining cookies.
3. Transfer cookies to a tray and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

Chocolate Glaze
1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl add the chocolate, coconut oil and agave and melt over a double boiler or in the microwave, stirring in 30-second intervals. Allow to cool.
2. Using 2 forks, dip each sandwich cookie into chocolate until coated. Arrange on baking sheet and place in the refrigerator.
3. Allow to chill until the chocolate has set, about 1 hour.

Helpful Tip
Store the chocolate glaze at room temperature in a squeeze bottle.

This recipes comes from The Chew on ABC.