These dark chocolate coffee mascarpone sandwich cookies are rich and chewy. Sandwiched between the cookies is a creamy, flavorful coffee mascarpone frosting made with instant espresso powder for extra punch.
It's an easy, one bowl cookie dough, and the frosting pipes beautifully. They're an irresistible, sneak to the cookie jar * just one more time * dessert.
There seems to be a theme here to some of my recipes - I buy a restaurant sized amount of some ingredient and then need to come up with ways to dispense with it all in a short amount of time.
With my first 5 pound tub of mascarpone cheese I made this reader favorite chocolate coffee mascarpone tart. Faced with another large amount of leftover mascarpone, I decided to recreate the key flavors of my tiramisu inspired tart, but in cookie form.
Three test batches of mascarpone cookies later, I settled on the perfectly sized dark chocolate cookie sandwich. The coffee mascarpone frosting was a challenge as well. I needed to find the right ratio of mascarpone to butter to keep the frosting from breaking. There's a lot of extra frosting in my fridge right now. Still, the testing was all worth it.
These deliciously dense and flavorful coffee mascarpone cream filled cookies are perfect with a cup of coffee, or on their own at any time. I've eaten them first thing in the morning (coffee, after all) and late at night, and at all hours in between. They always hit the spot.
For another boost of caffeine, check out all the coffee recipes in my repertoire.
And for more sandwich cookies, try my homemade Oreo cookie recipe, these flourless chocolate hazelnut baci di Alassio, and light, melt-in-your-mouth dulce de leche filled Argentine alfajores.
Ingredient notes
* See recipe card for a detailed list of ingredients and quantities.
Unsalted butter - Used in both the cookie and the frosting. It's melted in the cookie dough for an easy, chewy texture, and softened to room temperature for the frosting so it whips up light and creamy.
Brown sugar - Brown sugar adds a caramel flavor and extra moisture to these cookies.
Natural cocoa powder - It's important to use natural cocoa powder (not Dutch-process) for the cookies, as it reacts with the leaveners to provide the proper texture and a more rounded chocolate flavor.
Mascarpone cheese - The key to a luxurious texture in both the cookie and the frosting. For the best results, it should be added chilled, straight from the refrigerator. Stir the mascarpone to loosen it before adding.
Espresso powder: Espresso powder provides a concentrated, deep coffee flavor to the frosting. I use King Arthur Baking espresso powder for its bold flavor and high quality. I've also used DeLallo Brand and Medaglia D'Oro with great results.
Instructions
Combine brown sugar, melted butter, cocoa powder and vanilla in mixing bowl.
Mix until fully combined.
Add egg.
Mix until fully incorporated.
Add loosened mascarpone.
Mix until mascarpone is fully incorporated and no streaks remain.
Add flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
Mix just until incorporated. Do not over mix. Chill dough for 30 minutes in refrigerator until scoopable.
Scoop dough into leveled 1 Tablespoon amounts (16 grams) and roll into balls.
Bake 12 cookies at a time for 9 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mix espresso powder and vanilla extract into a slurry.
Cream butter 2-3 minutes, then add powdered sugar, espresso slurry, and salt.
Whip on high speed for 2-3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
Add loosened mascarpone.
Fold mascarpone into frosting using a spatula.
Transfer frosting to a 16 inch piping bag fitted with a large round tip.
Pipe Tablespoon sized circles (about 18 grams) of frosting onto the underside of a cookie.
Top frosting with another cookie and press gently to extend frosting to edges. Repeat with remaining cookies.
Make ahead and storage instructions
Make ahead instructions:
- Cookie dough: The dough can be made up to 3 days ahead and stored in the refrigerator or frozen for up to 3 months. If frozen, thaw in the refrigerator overnight before baking.
- Baked cookies: You can also bake the cookies ahead and store them unfrosted in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze them for up to 1 month.
- Frosting: The coffee mascarpone frosting can be made up to 3 days ahead. For best results, transfer it to a piping bag immediately after making, seal the end, and refrigerate. To use, let the filled piping bag sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes to soften. Important: Do not re-whip this frosting, as the mascarpone can break and become grainy.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! I tested this recipe with a variety of different cookie scoops. I decided to use a simple 1 Tablespoon amount for the dough (leveled, 16 grams) as it makes a manageable 2 ¼ inch (5.7 cm) diameter cookie and is a standard measure that most home bakers have on hand.
However, it's easy to adjust for different sized sandwich cookies. Here are some alternate sizes, with the resulting outcomes.
Please note that you will need to adjust the spacing on the baking sheets, as well as baking times for different sized cookies. The oven temperature should remain the same at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
1 ½ Tablespoon cookie scoop- 26 grams of dough, 40mm, medium scoop. This will make about 32 larger cookies, or 16 filled sandwich cookies that are 3 inches (7.6 cm) in diameter. Bake for 12 minutes.
1 Tablespoon cookie scoop - this is the size as written in the recipe, and seen in the photos - 16 grams of dough, 35mm, small scoop. This will make about 48 medium cookies, or 24 filled sandwich cookies that are 2 ¼ inches (5.7 cm) in diameter. Bake for 9 minutes.
½ Tablespoon cookie scoop - 6 grams of dough, 25mm, extra small scoop. This will make about 100 smaller cookies (it's a LOT), or 50 filled sandwich cookies that are 1 ¾ inches (4.4 cm) in diameter. Bake for 8 minutes.
While I've tested various cookie sizes, I have NOT checked to see if the amount of frosting listed here is the appropriate amount for the larger or smaller cookie size. If you do adjust the cookie size for filled cookies, please leave a comment with your experience!
Variations
- Replace the coffee mascarpone buttercream frosting with creamy, milk caramel flavored dulce de leche.
- Use the cookies to make ice cream sandwiches with small scoops of your favorite ice cream flavor. They'd be so good with the peanut butter ice cream from my chocolate peanut butter ice cream bar recipe!
Love this recipe? Please leave a comment and star rating. ★★★★★ Your feedback, suggestions, and adaptations are very helpful to other bakers!
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Coffee Mascarpone Sandwich Cookies
INGREDIENTS
CHOCOLATE MASCARPONE COOKIES
- 300 grams brown sugar
- 180 grams all purpose flour
- 170 grams unsalted butter, melted
- 80 grams cocoa powder, Natural, not Dutch process or alkalized
- 75 grams mascarpone cheese, chilled from fridge
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 10 mL vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, Diamond Crystal
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
COFFEE MASCARPONE FROSTING
- 300 grams powdered sugar, sifted
- 150 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
- 75 grams mascarpone cheese, chilled from fridge
- 1 Tablespoon espresso powder
- 10 mL vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, Diamond Crystal
INSTRUCTIONS
CHOCOLATE MASCARPONE COOKIES
- In a large bowl, stir melted butter, brown sugar, cocoa powder and vanilla extract together until thoroughly combined.170 grams unsalted butter, 300 grams brown sugar, 80 grams cocoa powder, 10 mL vanilla extract
- Add egg and mix until incorporated.1 large egg
- Add chilled mascarpone cheese and stir until no streaks are visible. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula to ensure all ingredients are combined.75 grams mascarpone cheese
- Add flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir until just combined - do not overmix.180 grams all purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Cover bowl and place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes so that dough is firm enough to be scoopable.
- Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit (177° Celsius, Gas mark 4) with rack in center.
- Scoop 1 Tablespoon (leveled, 16 grams weight) portions of dough and roll into balls. Place 12 balls of dough (3 rows of 4) onto a parchment covered baking sheet, leaving enough space between for spread.
- Bake for 9 minutes, until cookies are uniformly flat and just beginning to firm around the edges. The centers will still be slightly soft.
- Remove from oven. Working quickly, while cookies are still hot, swirl a circular cookie cutter (or the rim of an upside down glass) around each cookie to gently push the edges into a uniform circular shape.
- Cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to cooling rack. Repeat with remaining cookies.
COFFEE MASCARPONE FROSTING
- Add instant espresso powder and vanilla extract to a small prep bowl. Stir well to fully dissolve espresso powder and create a slurry. Set aside.10 mL vanilla extract, 1 Tablespoon espresso powder
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the butter. Cream until light and airy, 2-3 minutes.150 grams unsalted butter
- Add the powdered sugar, salt and espresso slurry from above. Whisk on low until combined. Scrape down bowl with a spatula. Increase speed to medium and beat for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping the bowl several times to ensure the butter is well incorporated and aerating evenly.300 grams powdered sugar, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Fold the loosened mascarpone in using a spatula. Do not over mix, or the mascarpone could split and curdle.75 grams mascarpone cheese
ASSEMBLY
- Transfer the frosting to a 16 inch piping bag fitted with a large round open tip (I use a Wilton 1A tip.)
- Pair similar sized cookies together. Flip a cookie upside down and pipe a generous Tablespoon size amount (about 18 grams) of frosting onto the center.
- Gently and evenly press a second cookie onto the top, until filling is even with the sides of the cookie. Set on a baking sheet. Repeat with remaining cookies.
- Place sheet of cookies into the fridge to set. Once firm, cookies should be transferred to an airtight container and stored in the fridge.
Chelsey says
these cookies were great. the instructions were descriptive a d clear. the family loved them.
Kathleen Culver says
Thanks Chelsey,
I'm glad your family loved them!
Kathleen
Lauren says
Hi! Any idea why my cookies didn't flatten? Thanks!
Kathleen Culver says
Hi Lauren,
It could have been a few different factors - let's see if we can figure it out!
Do you weigh your ingredients? Too much flour (or not enough wet ingredients) can prevent spreading.
Did you melt the butter before adding it?
Do you have an oven thermometer? If the temperature is off, they might not spread enough.
I'm happy to help you troubleshoot more so you can get these nice and flat.
Kathleen
sara says
what are the macros for these?
Kathleen Culver says
Hi Sara,
I don't calculate nutritional information, but there are lots of sites that will do so for you.
You can copy and paste the list of ingredients and enter the serving size.
Thanks!
Kathleen
Sarah says
This recipe was phenomenal. It was even a hit among the chefs at work! I used browned butter cooled to room temp in the cookies. In the filling I used left over browned hazelnut butter-- butter that was used to toast hazelnuts. It added subtle toasted, nutty notes. Decadent! I'm obsessed with this blog now.
Layla says
I did not have enough mascarpone to make the frosting, but the cookies looked amazing so I added some milk and dark choc chips to make some some triple chocolate cookies. They were really good, and I loved that they were just one bowl! Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Kathleen Culver says
I'm glad you enjoyed them!
Thanks so much.
Kathleen
Sharon says
You don't specify whether to use light or dark brown sugar in this. Which one should it be?
Kathleen Culver says
Hi Sharon,
If I haven't specified, either is fine to use!
Dark brown sugar has more molasses, which will provide a slightly more caramel flavor.
Up to you!
Enjoy,
Kathleen
YM says
Hello! This is exactly what I am looking for to use extra mascarpone. 😁
Can the cookies be frozen?
Cheers!
Kathleen Culver says
Hello!
I don't recommend freezing these cookies as freezing can alter the texture of mascarpone. That said, these cookies store incredibly well in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and should remain fresh for several weeks, if you can make them last that long. Never a problem in our house. : )
Kathleen
Puneet says
I made these a few weeks ago and they were a hit! The cookie was chewy and the filling was great! I do plan on making everything on your blog 😉 Thanks for the AMAZING recipes.
Kathleen Culver says
Thank you so much, Puneet!
What a lovely compliment. I'm so glad that you're here.
Please let me know if you have any questions at all!
Kathleen