Chocolate Orange Thumbprint Cookies

Instructions

To prepare the cookie dough

1. Cream the butter and sugar well.
2. Beat in the egg.
3. Beat in the vanilla extract and milk.
4. Sift together the flour, salt, cocoa baking soda and baking powder.
5. Blend the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture until a soft dough forms.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Roll the dough into 3/4 to 1 inch balls and lay them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheets about 2 inches apart.
7. Using your thumb or the round end of the handle of a wooden spoon, make a deep indentation into the centre of each dough ball. about 3/4 of an inch wide.
8. Bake for 15-17 minutes until firm to the touch when baked.
9. When the cookies are removed from the oven, and while they are still warm, use the round end of a wooden spoon handle or similar instrument to press the centre depressions in the cookies down again to create a good "well" in the centre of the cookies.
10. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely before continuing to fill the cookies.

To prepare the orange buttercream filling

1. Simply beat all of the ingredients together until smooth.
2. You want this to be thicker than frosting, so only use as much milk as it takes to make a very stiff filling. You can always add a little more icing sugar if you use a little too much milk.

To prepare the chocolate covering

1. In a small saucepan heat the whipping cream to almost boiling over medium low heat.
2. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the chocolate chips until melted.

To assemble the cookies

1. Using a piping bag or a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off, fill the cookie "wells" with the orange cream filling so that they dome a little over the height of the cookie.
2. Spoon a dollop of the chocolate over the filling to cover it.
3. Cool completely at room temperature until the chocolate sets.
4. Store or freeze in airtight containers.