White Chocolate Ricotta-Filled Cookies

This is a clever fusion dessert, the kind of thing you might expect on an upmarket dim-sum menu. Chinese sue gow (won ton) skins stand in for cookies, baked crisp with a sprinkle of toasted hazelnuts and chopped dark chocolate on top. Between two baked skins sits a cannoli-style white chocolate ricotta filling scented with orange zest.

The skins bake, they do not fry. Nine to ten minutes in a 350°F (175°C) oven turns them into pale, crisp wafers with just enough give to sandwich the creamy filling. Butter brushed on the baking sheet helps them release and adds a little richness.

The filling is essentially a stripped-down cannoli cream. Ricotta beaten with grated white chocolate, powdered sugar, and orange zest. No eggs, no cooking, no chocolate chips, just four things that come together in two minutes.

Orange zest is the ingredient that ties it all together. Its citrus oils amplify the chocolate and cut the richness of the ricotta. Do not skip it or substitute lemon. Orange is what makes this dessert feel Mediterranean rather than Chinese.

Assemble close to serving. The crisp skins turn soft if they sit long with the wet filling against them.

Pro Tips

• Use whole-milk ricotta and drain it through cheesecloth for 30 minutes to get rid of excess moisture. Watery ricotta makes soggy cookies.
• Grate white chocolate on the fine side of a box grater so it disappears into the ricotta rather than sitting in chunks.
• Keep an eye on the oven. Wonton skins go from golden to scorched in under a minute at the end.
• Rotate the pans halfway through baking so the skins cook evenly. Home ovens have hot spots.

Variations

• Swap hazelnuts for toasted pistachios for a Sicilian accent.
• Fold in a tablespoon of mini chocolate chips with the ricotta filling for extra crunch.
• Drizzle the finished sandwiches with melted dark chocolate for a more dramatic presentation.