My First Bake-O-lution! Momofuku Milkbar Cornflake Cookie Sandwiches Filled with Cereal Milk Buttercream

On my first day at my new job, the whole office gathered for an afternoon break featuring more than half a dozen cakes. While I’d like to say this was all to welcome me to the office, it was actually a fun monthly tradition we have at Share Our Strength: Bake-O-lution.  It’s an opportunity each month for the bakers amongst us to try out recipes without the temptation to eat the entire cake, and trust me… that temptation is real!  The only rule: you have to experiment with a recipe you’ve never tried before.  Colleagues turn out in droves, and after fifteen minutes, rarely is there anything left but a few crumbs.

While I’ve been there almost six months (how did that happen?!), I’ve missed almost every single Bake-O-lution for one reason or another, so this was my first month to participate as a baker – and at the holiday part Bake-O-lution, none-the-less!  Many of my  colleagues are very talented pastry chefs, crafting cakes that are prettier than you’d find in a Paris bakery.  I, on the other hand, am really more of a cook.  The idea of layering, and icing, and letting the cake cool (stress spasms just thinking about it!) has the tendency to drive me to destroy the cake and just eat frosting by the fistful.  So instead, I decided that for my first go-round I’d leave the cakes to the pros and stick with cookies.  These weren’t just your standard chocolate chip cookies though, these were Momofuku cornflake sandwich cookies stuffed with cereal milk buttercream.

And Oh, mah LAWD.  I betcha can’t eat just one.  (No, really, they’re sandwich cookies… you actually can’t eat just one).

Momofuku Milkbar Cornflake Cookie Sandwiches Filled with Cereal Milk Buttercream

Adapted from Kailley’s Kitchen

For the cookies:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 Tablespoon molasses
• 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 1/2 cups cornflakes, coarsely crushed

1. Add butter, oil, and both sugars to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream on medium speed until smooth
2. Add eggs, vanilla and molasses and mix on high until combined, about 1 minute
3. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed
4. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt
5. Mix oats into flour mixture
6. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix on low until just combined
7. Fold in crushed cornflakes until evenly distributed
8. Dough should be thick and sticky
9. Cover bowl of dough and chill in the refrigerator for two hours (this helps to prevent cookies from spreading)
10. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats
11. Roll dough into balls (about 1-inch thick) and place balls 2 inches apart on the baking sheets
12. Bake for 15 minutes until very lightly browned on the sides and centers are soft and slightly under-baked
13. Remove from the oven and let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely; cookies will continue to “set” on the baking sheet during this time

For the Cereal Milk:

• 3 cups cornflakes
• 3 cups whole milk, cold
• 2 Tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1. Put the cornflakes in a pitcher, pour the milk over them and stir vigorously; let steep for 20 minutes at room temperature
2. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, collecting the milk in a medium bowl (use your hand or the back of a spoon to gently wring the milk out of the cornflakes).
3. Whisk in brown sugar and salt until fully dissolved

For the Cereal Milk Buttercream:

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 2 ounces cream cheese
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup cereal milk

1. Add butter and cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream on high until smooth, about 2 minutes
2. Add confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing well between each addition and scraping down sides as needed
3. Add Cereal Milk and mix until smooth

Assembly:

1. Spoon about 1 Tbsp buttercream onto the bottom side of a (completely cooled) cookie; place another cookie on top (flat side facing the buttercream) to create sandwiches
2. Serve alone or with a tall glass of leftover cereal milk!

Makes 20 sandwich cookies

Johanna