Drop of Disney

Happy Friday! When I started seeing these cookies pop up on Instagram, I really wanted to try one. Lucky for me, the Disney Parks Blog released the recipe a couple of weeks ago and so this week, I decided to make them. I ended making a couple changes to the recipe, but overall I’m so happy with how they came out! Straight from EPCOT, these vanilla and chocolate Spaceship Earth cookies are filled with salted caramel ganache and topped with sparkling silver sanding sugar and a hidden Mickey holly decoration!

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In theory, this recipe is pretty straightforward, but there are a lot of parts to these Spaceship Earth cookies, so definitely give yourself plenty of time or make the cookies over a couple days. To start, make the salted caramel ganache and the royal icing holly decorations as they need the most time to cool and set.

To make the ganache, start by placing the chopped chocolate into a heat-safe. I used a semi-sweet baking bar from Ghirardelli, as I thought it tasted a bit better, but you can also use chocolate chips. Next, Combine the sugar, water, and lemon juice, in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and then bring to a boil without stirring. Let cook for 2-3 minutes, undisturbed, until the sugar is a deep amber color and it reaches 350 F. I mostly did this step by looking at the color, but if you want to check the temperature, I’d definitely recommend using a candy thermometer.

Remove the sugar mixture from the heat and stir in 1/3 of the heavy cream. When the cream stops bubbling, stir in another 1/3 of the cream and then add in the rest of the cream. Stir in the butter, one piece at a time. Then, add in the salt. I actually reduced the amount of salt by half as I found it super salty the first time I made the ganache. If you do like an extra salty caramel, you can add more in.

Return the caramel to medium high heat and cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes or until the butter and cream are fully incorporated. Remove from the heat and pour the caramel over the chocolate. Let sit for 5 minutes and then whisk until the chocolate has melted, the caramel is incorporated, and the ganache is smooth and glossy. Let cool to room temperature, about 4 hours. Place in the refrigerator if you’re not going to use it right away.

Next, make the royal icing for the holly decorations. First, whisk together the powdered sugar and meringue power. Then, add the warm water and beat until glossy and hold stiff peaks. You want this batch of royal icing to be pretty stiff but it if seems too thick to pipe, add a bit more water.

Divide the icing into two bowls. Mix green gel food coloring into one bowl and red gel food coloring into the other bowl. Transfer the green icing to a piping bag fitted with a leaf tip. For this, I used Wilton tip #352. Transfer the red icing to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip. I used Wilton tip #3.

Next, line a baking sheet with wax paper. Pipe two leaves onto the wax paper, making sure they touch each other at one of the ends. Repeat until you have enough for all of the cookies and some extra (15-20). Then, pipe the holly berries on the end of the leaves, where they’re touching. I piped three berries to make a hidden Mickey. Let rest, uncovered, until hard, about 2-3 hours.

Now, make the vanilla and chocolate cookie doughs. I found it easiest to prep the ingredients for both doughs at the same time. Then you can make the doughs one after another so that they can chill at the same time. To make the cookies doughs, combine the flour and salt (and cocoa powder for the chocolate cookies) in a medium bowl.

In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until combined. Add in half of the flour mixture, beating until combined, and then add in the second half of the flour mixture. Beat again until combined. Form the dough into a large ball and then flatten into a disk about 1-inch thick. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30-60 minutes.

Remove one of the doughs from the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 350 F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 1/4 – 1/8 inch thickness. Cut into shapes using a Spaceship Earth cookie cutter or a fluted round cookie cutter. I used a Spaceship Earth cookie cutter that was part of a set from ShopDisney. You could also try cutting out the dough freehand, but that is a bit more work.

Place the cut-out cookies on the prepared baking sheets and then place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. Bake for 12 minutes or until the edges start to brown. Let cool for a couple minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the second dough. Let the cookies cool completely before assembling.

To assemble the Spaceship Earth cookies, place 1 tablespoon of salted caramel ganache on the top of each chocolate cookie. I found the easiest way to do this was to transfer the ganache into a piping bag and then pipe it onto the cookie. Place a vanilla cookie on top of the ganache covered cookies and gently press down so that the ganache expands to the edges of the cookie. Place cookies in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.

While they’re chilling, make the second batch of royal icing by combining the powdered sugar, meringue powder, lemon juice, and corn syrup in a large bowl. Beat until combined and then stir in 4 tablespoons of warm water. Add more water if it seems too thick. Pour the silver sanding sugar into a bowl to make it easier to dip the cookies into. Dip the vanilla side of the cookie into the icing. Remove any excess icing and then dip into the silver sanding sugar. Dab a little bit of icing onto the back of the holly decorations and then gently press into the top of the decorated cookies.

Enjoy these Spaceship Earth Cookies!

Print

Spaceship Earth Cookies

Straight from EPCOT, these chocolate and vanilla Spaceship Earth Cookies are filled with a salted caramel ganache and topped with sparkling sugar and hidden Mickey holly decoration!

Course Dessert

Keyword Cookies

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 30 minutes

Rest Time 4 hours

Servings 15 cookies

Ingredients

Salted Caramel Ganache

• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons water
• ½ teaspoon lemon juice
• ½ cup heavy cream
• ½ teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Vanilla Cookie

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ⅔ cup powdered sugar
• 9 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Chocolate Cookie

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Royal Icing – Cookies

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon meringue powder
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 4-5 tablespoons warm water

Royal Icing – Decoration

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 ¼ teaspoons meringue powder
• 2 tablespoons warm water
• red gel food coloring
• green gel food coloring

Decoration

• silver sanding sugar/sprinkles

Equipment

• piping bags
• leaf piping tip (Wilton 352)
• small round tip (Wilton 3)
• Spaceship Earth cookie cutter or a fluted round cookie cutter

Instructions

Salted Caramel Ganache

1. Place chocolate in a medium heat-safe bowl. Set aside.
2. Combine the sugar, water, and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Bring mixture to a boil, without stirring, and let cool 2-3 minutes, until the mixture is deep amber in color and reaches 350 F.
3. Remove the mixture from the heat and stir in ⅓ of the heavy cream. When the cream stops bubbling, add another ⅓ of the cream and then the rest.
4. Stir in the butter, one piece at time. Stir in the salt.
5. Return to medium and cook, stirring constantly, until the cream and butter are fully incorporated.
6. Pour the caramel over the chocolate pieces and let sit for 5 minutes. Whisk until the chocolate has melted, the caramel has incorporated, and the ganache has a smooth, glossy finish.
7. Cool at room temperature until the ganache is at room temperature, about 4 hours. Store in the refrigerator if not using right away.

Royal Icing – Decorations

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and meringue powder.
2. Add the warm water and beat on low speed until combined. Turn to medium high speed and beat until the icing is glossy and holds stiff peaks. The icing should be thick but pipable. Mix in additional water if needed.
3. Divide the icing into two bowls. Mix the desired amount of green gel food coloring into one of the bowls. Transfer the icing to a piping bag fitted with a leaf tip. Mix the desired amount of red food coloring into the other bowl. Transfer the icing to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip.
4. Line a baking sheet with a piece of wax paper.
5. Pipe two holly leaves next to each other so that they touch at one end. Repeat so that you have enough for each cookie and a couple in case any break (15-20).
6. Using the red icing, pipe small dots onto the place where the two leaves touch. I piped three dots to make a hidden Mickey.
7. Let the icing decorations dry, uncovered, until hardened, about 2-3 hours.

Vanilla Cookies

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated.
3. Add half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined. Add the remaining half of the flour and mix until combined.
4. Roll the dough into a large ball and then flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerator for 30-60 minutes.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and roll out to ⅛ – ¼ inch thickness.
7. Cut out the cookies using a Spaceship Earth shaped cookie cutter or a round fluted cookie cutter. Transfer the cut-out cookies to the prepared baking sheets and place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
8. Bake cookies for 12 minutes or until the edges are beginning to brown. Let cool for a couple minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Chocolate Cookies

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated.
3. Add half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined. Add the remaining half of the flour and mix until combined.
4. Roll the dough into a large ball and then flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerator for 30-60 minutes.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and roll out to ⅛ – ¼ inch thickness.
7. Cut out the cookies using a Spaceship Earth shaped cookie cutter or a round fluted cookie cutter. Transfer the cut-out cookies to the prepared baking sheets and place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
8. Bake cookies for 12 minutes or until the edges are beginning to brown. Let cool for a couple minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Assembly

1. Place about 1 tablespoon of salted caramel ganache on top of each chocolate cookie. An easy way to do this is to transfer the ganache to a piping bag and pipe the ganache onto the cookies.
2. Place a vanilla cookie on top of the ganache covered cookies and gently press it down until the ganache spreads to the edges of the cookie.
3. Refrigerate the assembled cookies for 20 minutes.

Royal Icing

1. Combine the powdered sugar, meringue powder, corn syrup, and lemon juice in a large bowl.
2. Beat in 4 tablespoons of warm water. The icing should be smooth and not too thick. Add additional water if needed.
3. Cover with plastic wrap until reading to use.

Decoration

1. Dip the vanilla side of the cookie into the royal icing. Wipe off an excess frosting.
2. Then, dip the frosted side of the cookie into the silver sanding sugar.
3. Place a dab of royal icing onto the back of the holly decoration and gently press onto the top of the decorated cookie.
4. Let the cookies set for 15 minute before eating.

Recipe Notes

adapted from Disney Parks Blog