I've made these once before, with the recipe for homemade chocolate wafers from the Smitten Kitchen website. They came out yummy, but were labor-intensive for what you get.
Since then, I have found an outlet for the Nabisco wafers, seemingly the only store in Northern Nevada that carries them. The checker at the register asked me if I had called earlier in the day about them, and I told her no. Apparently, someone else is on the prowl for them and I'm lucky I got there before her, because she asked how many boxes were on the shelf, and if there were any more on order. Whew.
The only reason anyone would want such a plain-ass cookie is to make an icebox cake, or in my case, icebox cupcakes. So I have no quandaries whatsoever regarding buying a box or two of these rather than making a batch from scratch.
The next day was Sunday BBQ with the fam, so I got started on these the night before, because they have to sit overnight in the fridge to soften and soak up all the fat globules from the whipped cream.
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Icebox Cupcakes
(from smittenkitchen.com)
Makes about a dozen cupcakes, but this will vary depending on the height of your stacks. I used four apiece, and made a few five-piecers because I sometimes lost count.
Ingredients:
Nabisco Chocolate Wafers (I used about a box and a quarter)
1 cup whipping cream
1 to 2 spoons of powdered sugar (adjusted to your preferred sweetness)
A dash of your favorite flavoring or extract (I used about 1/2 teaspoon almond extract, but vanilla would work, would someday like to try it with peppermint)
Directions:
Whip cream with a spoonful or two of powdered sugar and a dash of a flavoring of your choice, until the whipped cream holds firm peaks. Spread about two teaspoons whipped cream between each cookie, to the edges, and stack them until you reach the height you’d like. You can spread whipped cream on top of the final cookie -- you will end up with a softer lid -- or you can leave the final cookie plain.
Set them in the fridge at least overnight or up to a day. The cookies will soften as they set, and become cake-like.
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Whip until you get those stiff peaks. I added a dash of almond extract just because I had some, but any flavoring will work.
I think it's easier and faster to use a pastry bag to pipe the whipped cream onto the cookie layers, rather than spooning it on.
I have almond crumbs left over after I strain my almond flour prior to making macarons. I stick them in the freezer for just such occasions. But fresh fruit would work, too. Or a maraschino cherry. Or chocolate chips. Or just about anything.
Final verdict: Ohmigod-easy and almost no time at all to make. The hardest part is probably just finding the chocolate wafers in the first place. But I must say, the homemade wafers are tasty, too, and if you have a couple hours to kill, by all means, give them a try.
