Step 1

Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt into a medium bowl.

Step 2

Cream together the butter and sugar in the bowl of a large mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the egg, and mix until well-combined. Turn the speed to low and add the flour, mixing until just a few streaks of flour remain. Finish mixing the dough by hand, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Step 3

Roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper or waxed paper, until it is less than ¼-inch thick. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes, until firm.

Step 4

Preheat oven to 350°Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 5

Take the rolled dough, and use a small circular cutter to cut out 2" circles of dough. If you have a cookie stamp, press it firmly into the top of each cookie to make an impression. If it is sticking, dust it lightly with cocoa powder in between cookies.

Step 6

Place the cookies on the backing sheets, and bake for 9 minutes, until they’ve slightly puffed up and lost the raw shine in the middle. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Step 7

Take the scraps of dough, re-roll it, and cut out more circles. Repeat until all of the dough is used—you may need to chill it briefly until it’s firm enough to work with again. You should get about 48 cookies from this recipe.

Step 8

Combine the butter, powdered sugar, and salt in the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the powdered sugar is moistened, then turn to medium speed and mix for 1-2 minutes, until it has a lighter color and fluffy texture. Don’t over-mix, because the more you mix, the more air you’ll beat into the buttercream, and the softer it will be. It still needs to be somewhat firm so it doesn’t squish out the sides of the cookie.

Step 9

Divide the buttercream equally into 5 portions—each one will be a little less than a cup of frosting. Make the following flavors: VANILLA BEAN: stir the vanilla bean paste into the frosting. LEMON: lemon extract, 1/8 tsp citric acid, and 1-2 drops lemon yellow food coloring. ORANGE: orange extract, 1/8 tsp citric acid, and 1-2 drops orange food coloring. RASPBERRY: raspberry extract, 1/8 tsp citric acid, and 1-2 drops pink food coloring. MINT CHIP: mint extract, 1 drop yellow coloring, 1-2 drops green coloring, and the finely chopped chocolate.

Step 10

Spread a generous tablespoon of frosting on top of a cookie, and press down with a second cookie until the frosting spreads out to the edges. Repeat until all of the cookies are assembled. Gourmet homemade Oreos can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days, or in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.