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These Homemade Tim Tams are an Australian specialty consisting of two chocolate cookies, sandwiched around chocolate-malt frosting, dipped in chocolate. Sounds pretty good doesn’t it?
Today is a verrrrrry exciting day, because I get to share a recipe from my new favorite dessert cookbook, The Sugar Hit! If you’re not already familiar with The Sugar Hit blog, head over there immediately—I’ll wait. *files nails* *eats a cookie*
Now that your eyeballs have exploded from all of the delicious desserts Sarah posts on the regular, you can understand why I was so anxious to get my hands on her cookbook, which just came out a few weeks ago. It’s just like Sarah’s blog—fun, colorful, cheeky, loaded with personality, full of whimsical desserts with big ideas and even bigger flavors.
So when Sarah offered me the opportunity to share a recipe from her book on SugarHero, she hadn’t even finished her sentence before I type-shouted, “YES YES A THOUSAND TIMES YES.” (Emailed conversations make it so much harder to enthusiastically interrupt people these days, am I right?) It was hard to decide what to make, and for a while I was leaning toward the dulce de leche crepes (om nom nom nom) but in the end, these ultra-chocolatey Homemade Tim Tams won out.
Sarah’s Australian, so she has access to all sorts of fun junk food this poor American doesn’t have. Tim Tams are an Australian national treasure specialty, consisting of two chocolate cookies, sandwiched around chocolate-malt frosting, dipped in chocolate. If you’re thinking it sounds like chocolate overload—and thus, totally up my alley—you are absolutely right.
I’ve never had a Tim Tam, and despite making a special trip to Cost Plus World Market last week, I haven’t been able to track one down yet. So I can’t do a direct comparison. But these cookies are so gosh-darn-dagnabit-rootin-tootin good (pardon my language), I can’t believe there’s any mass marketed treat that can even come close. No way do commercial Tim Tams have the deep chocolate flavor, rich frosting filling, and crispy-creamy textural interplay that these homemade cookie sandwiches do. It’s just not possible. So even without tasting the original, I have no qualms about calling these The Best Tim Tams Ever.
The problem with these cookies, if there is one, is that they’re kind of petite. Just a few inches long. Small enough so that you think you’re not really having a whole dessert serving if you have one. And, you know how if you give a mouse a cookie, he’ll always ask for a glass of milk? Well, if you give this girl a Tim Tam, she’ll always ask for a second…and then a third. Because I’m powerless in the face of triple chocolate sandwich cookies, and I’m blaming it all on The Sugar Hit.
So, the recipe is down below if you want to tempt your own sweet teeth, and please go check out Sarah’s blog and her book if you want more great desserts. She is all about being fearless and having fun in the kitchen, and her blog’s bold colors and punchy graphic style really convey this. (I busted out my loudest, most colorfully patterned cups and plates as a little shout-out to her style.)
Speaking of punchy style, SugarHero is about to get a MAJOR facelift! Like, within a week! Hang on to your measuring cups, ladies and gents, because this will be a huge change. It should be a pretty seamless transition to the new design, but please bear with me if there are any hiccups or downtime along the way. This has been a LONG time coming and I am so excited for you all to see the new and greatly improved site. Sooooooon!
Where Can I Find Tim Tams?
In the United States, I have found Tim Tams at my local Target stores and at Cost Plus World Market.
What Is A Tim Tam Slam?
A Tim Tam slam is when you bite off two corners of the cookie, place it in a drink, and slurp the drink through the cookie!
Homemade Tim Tams
Ingredients
For the Cookies:
- 4 oz unsalted butter, at room temperature (115 g)
- 4 oz granulated sugar, (1/2 cup or 115 g)
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 oz unsweetened cocoa powder, (1/3 cup or 30 g)
- 5 1/2 oz all-purpose flour, (1 cup or 150 g)
- pinch of salt
For the Filling:
- 4 oz unsalted butter, at room temperature (115 g)
- 4 oz powdered sugar, (1 cup or 115 g)
- 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp chocolate malted milk powder, (like Ovaltine or Horlicks)
For the Coating:
- 10 oz milk chocolate, or dark chocolate (280 g)
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions
To Make the Cookies:
- Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, and cream until pale and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl, and add the egg and continue beating until the egg is incorporate and the mixture lightens in color. Add the cocoa powder and beat until there are no lumps. Finally, fold through the flour and salt until it is all incorporated. The dough will be very soft.
- Scrape the dough out onto a piece of parchment paper. Add a second sheet of paper on top, and roll out the dough between the two sheets until it is a rectangle about 1/4-inch thick. Place the dough on a tray and freeze it for 30 minutes, or refrigerate it for 1-2 hours, until firm.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
- Cut the chilled dough into 28 small 1 1/4 in x 2 1/2 in rectangles. Place them in evenly spaced intervals on the baking sheets and bake for 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool completely at room temperature.
To Make the Filling:
- Cream the butter until soft, then sift in the remaining ingredients and beat until light and fluffy. Spread a heaping teaspoon of filling on half of the cookies, or transfer the frosting to a piping bag and pipe an even layer of filling on half of the cookies. Top with the remaining cookies, then put in the refrigerator to chill while you make the coating.
To Assemble:
- For the coating, place the chocolate and coconut oil in a heat-proof bowl and melt them together in the microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring after every 30 seconds to prevent overheating. Once the chocolate is mostly melted, remove and stir gently until smooth.
- Using a fork or dipping tools, dip a chilled cookie in the melted chocolate and place it back on the baking sheet. If you want to create a wavy pattern on top of the cookies, lightly press the tines of the fork or dipping tool to the top while the chocolate is still wet. Repeat until all of the cookies are dipped. Chill in the refrigerator, then devour!
Recipe Notes
MEASURING TIPS
Our recipes are developed using weight measurements, and we highly recommend using a kitchen scale for baking whenever possible. However, if you prefer to use cups, volume measurements are provided as well. PLEASE NOTE: the adage “8 oz = 1 cup” is NOT true when speaking about weight, so don’t be concerned if the measurements don’t fit this formula.
Click here to learn more about baking measurements and conversion.
This book sounds awesome, and these Tim Tams look so fun and yummy! Can’t wait to see the site makeover! 🙂
Thank you Joan! The book is super fun, and judging by how fast we put away these Tim Tams, we all agreed they were yummy. 🙂
Your photos make me want to jump right into these cookies! I love your photography and can’ wait to see your new site design
Thanks so much, Karen!
Tim Tams-OMG! Love them. We find them at Target. Maybe your local one will have them. {fingers crossed}
I am at Target like four times a week! I can’t believe I haven’t seen them yet–I’m going to keep a lookout from now on!
I get my Tim Tams from Target. The only place I have found. Thanks for your Tim Tam recipe!!!
I’m a Target junkie–how have I missed them? To the Target immediately!
I love Sarah’s blog!
Did you know we (as in Aussies) now have so many Tim Tam flavours to choose from. I recently read an article that ranked them all. We even have ‘celebrity flavours’ !
The Australian past time is to take a nibble from 2 diagonal corners and drink your coffee through it!
A cookie straw, I am SO into that! I’d love to try some different flavors…just for research purposes, you understand. 😉
These look great! And very authentic, I might add. They really do look just like the real thing- as an Aussie, I may have to take one for the team and make these so I can do a comparison!
All in the name of science, of course! So glad to get an Aussie’s approval. 🙂
These look PERFECT!!!! Thank you so much for sharing these, and I can’t wait to see the new site design!
Thank you for bringing these into my life! Thank you and also no thank you, because I’ve eaten way too many of them…
WOW I am an Aussie and I only buy then for the semi annual care packages I send to my brother and SIL in Canada. I am not a fan of the tim tam I can leave them more than I will eat them! Funny that I will eat Oreo’s more!
Oooh, I think I need to host a cookie eat-off: Tim Tams vs Oreos! I’m mostly lukewarm on Oreos but I could eat a whole package of the mint ones in one go. (Whoops)
I have never eaten a storebought tim tam either, but they do sound delicious! And this homemade version–wow! Looks perfect 🙂
Thanks June! Apparently Target carries them–who knew??
Yes tim tams are fantastic. As Australian have grown up eating them it is a shame you can’t get them in American. But now you have the next best thing. They really do look like the real thing and I am looking forward to making them. If you have a Po box send it and I will send you some tim tams in the post
Thanks Michaela! I’ve found out that a local store, Target, apparently carries them. I’m going on a Tim Tam hunt! Let me know what you think when you make them!
I went to Australia a few months ago and ate a few (boxes) of these. They were so good and I miss them, so I am definitely trying this recipe! Can’t wait to see your new website. 🙂
Let me know what you think if you give them a try! Bonus: no empty boxes to judge you and make you realize how many cookies you’ve eaten. 😉
So excited about your new look, ladyfriend! And YAY SARAH, that talented minx.
Also, I saw Tim Tams at a Target once. Someone told me they weren’t the real-deal Tim Tams and I got real mad at Target for like three seconds. (They make some fun patterned tights, you know!)
Oh, I could never be mad at Target. They could rob me blind and I would be like, “Dang it!…now show me to your clearance makeup section.”
I have never had a Tim Tam. They don’t sell them around here; well, at least not that I’ve seen. These look wonderful. Love your new site design and layout.
Thanks so much, Jennie! After posting this, a bunch of people told me that Target carries them! So if you have a Target nearby, maybe you can search there for a Tim Tams? I’m going to give that a try as well!
Wow, great website – I love all the new features! *thumbs up* Tim Tams!! Years ago an Australian friend of my mom’s introduced her to these and well, it was a joyous day when we were able to start buying them here (even Target carries the original brand now which is great!). She also taught her the proper way to eat a them so that it is even a 100 x better experience. These look like a close replica, I can’t wait to try them sometime! (Why go to the store and be embarrassed going through the checkout line with a couple of packages when you can make them at home and no one has to know how many you eat, right?? ;^P )
Thanks so much, Lexi! We’re still making little tweaks here and there, but in general it feels great to have a blog makeover. 🙂 And yes, I love that I can now enjoy as many as I want without feeling judged by checkout clerks!
As your unofficial Aussie recipe tester, these are high on my “Fun Things to Do in the Holidays!” list!! Rather fittingly, my NY-dwelling sister is coming home for a couple of weeks, and I think she needs to experience the home-made version too. Will report back 🙂
Yay! There definitely needs to be a family taste-test! Let me know what you think! And do check out Sarah’s blog if you haven’t already, she has some other fun Aussie favorites you might like. 🙂
They were so yummy!! Loved by all three generations of the family that sampled them! I might have to double the batch next time. They looked great too – I’ll have to put a photo on your Facebook page or something.
The biscuit was a bit more shortbread-like than the commercial, but it all made a richer, more special finished product, I thought. Though perhaps I should go and eat the commercial ones now and mull over that some more 😉
YES, definitely share a pic on FB–I’d love to see it! Glad to hear that they were a hit, and I do think some comparison taste-testing is probably in order. 🙂
Oh. My. Goodness … anyone who knows me knows what I nut I am about Tim Tams … but the best thing is doing a TIM TAM SLAM!!!! bit off opposite corners, then suck coffee or another hot beverage up through the cookie until soggy, then slam it all into your mouth … it’s better than oreos and milk!!!!!
I have got to try this!!!
Yes. Yes you do. It’s amazing.
Do you have a recipe for the white tim tams? I found the chocolate and caramel ones at Target but no white ones.
Hi Gayle! I haven’t attempted a white Tim Tam yet…sorry! You can try asking Sarah from TheSugarHit.com (where this recipe originally came from) if she has any ideas!
just made them… turned out great!! thanks for the recipe, will be used again
Wonderful, I’m so glad you liked them! Thanks for the feedback. 🙂
I totally agree with the slamming Tim tam comment! can these be slammed?- can you suck liquid into the cookie? I found Tim Tams at Kroger-they even had a digital coupon for BOGO!
Score!! BOGO for the win! I confess that I ate them all before trying a slam–I might need to make them again to give it a try!
Seriously, you have got to do the Tim Tam Slam. You’ll never go back to eating these cookies plain again.
can I substitute coconut oil with iolive oil?
You can, but I would recommend vegetable oil or canola oil or another more neutral oil if you can!
i am so excited about making these with the nursery children
I would love to hear how it goes with the children! Sounds like a fun project!
We don’t have malted drink powder here. What can I substitue for?
I think you could use NesQuick if you have that?
That should work too!!
I have been looking for a good homemade Tim Tam recipe for so long! Being Aussies we can get our hands on the real stuff any time we like, but we choose not to because they have palm oil in them (and not the sustainable kind). Already writing down the ingredients for a shopping trip tomorrow!
So glad you could find a recipe! Let me know how they work out! Thank you so much!
Live in NZ so have Tim Tams available at every supermarket. But they are so expensive almost $5 a pack of like 10 cookies. Will have to try this! Do you know of another substitute for Coconut oil I could use?
Vegetable oil works just as well! Happy to hear you are excited to make this recipe let me know how it turns out!
What kind of coconut oil is best to use?
I use extra virgin because thats what I have in the house, but any kind will work just fine!
How dare you insult our national treasure by comparing them to these biscuit sandwiches???
Btw still going to make one tho… haha. If they turn out good I won’t take back my comment but you can have second best
And did your friend tell you how is the BEST way of eating these treasures?
Hey Mily, do you mean a Tim Tam Slam!:) Yes I’ve tried it, it was delicious!!
Can’t wait to make these, but how exactly do you create the waves with the fork or tool? There’s not a clear description of the movement in the recipe. I wouldn’t even know what to do with my fork to get that pattern. Would you please describe in detail, or share a little video? 🙂
Hey Claire, I will do my best! So seeing as the cookie has just been dipped in the chocolate and is still wet what I do is start at one end of the cookie and tap the cookie with the fork tines laying flat, and lift up and move upwards on the cookie repeating this movement to the other end. If you are just lighting tapping and moving it upward (from one end to the other) it will then create a little ripple. I hope that helps! I would love to hear how it goes, and see pictures! Thanks!
LOVE this recipe. Thank you.
I am an Australian & we love our Tim Tams in our family. This recipe is amazing. I loved making it. It tastes very similar to the real thing.
Hey Emma, I am so happy to hear you all loved it! I really appreciate your feedback, those look amazing!!!
Will these stay good for a few hours at room temperature? My school friends asked me to make them some, so they might be unrefrigerated for up to 8 hours… would they be ok, or just melt?
Hey Emma, If you want to be safe I would suggest replacing the chocolate dip I have in the recipe for candy melts instead. I know Wilton is a good brand that has some chocolate candy melts that are made to stand up to hotter temperatures. I’m sure they would hold up better than the chocolate dip I have in the recipe. Honestly it’s not like the recipe won’t work it just may be more melted and messier than the candy melts would be as a coating. I hope that helps! Let us know if you have anymore questions. I would love to hear how it goes!
I haven’t looked at Target, but I have been finding them at Safeway! They’ve had the original chocolate one and also the caramel.
This is absolutely glorious! I omitted some of the sugar in both the filling and the biscuits themselves, and used dark chocolate for the coating. I adore one of these with a cup of tea for dessert.
Hey Nici, I am so glad to hear you enjoyed it so much! The adjustments you made sound perfect, I am so glad you were able to play around with it and find a way that it works best! That is awesome, thank you so much for your feedback!
I love timtams and am excited to try my own. I’m wondering how long homemade one keep and if I should keep them in the fridge or freezer?
To be fair, these are much better than store brought Tim tams, they use fake chocolate and they taste like garbage not what they used to be! I only eat these homade ones, I’m put off store brought fake “Australian” cheap Tim tams. BTW, I’m Australian, live in Australia, grew up eating these things all the time but prefer quality
We are a huge fan of Tim Tams, so finding a diy option is fantastic! These turned out great but I ended up with a lot of extra icing! I think I only used half, and that was even with putting about a tablespoon on each cookie! You may also want to update the time at the top of the card because you need a few hours for the chill and set times in between. At first glance it makes it seem like it only takes 15 minutes to do these cookies. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the feedback, Aviva! I’ve added a “chilling time” section to the recipe card to clarify that. I’m glad you enjoyed the cookies!
For the filling, does it matter if the malt powder is chocolate-flavored or original? I have the nestle carnation malted milk powder and was going to use that. I didn’t know if chocolate ovaltine powder would be better.
Hi Abbey, if you have the Carnation, I would just go ahead and use that. I did use Ovaltine chocolate when I made them, but since it requires such a small amount, I would just use what you have–the cocoa powder will still give it a nice chocolate flavor. 🙂
It may not matter. I was wondering if this recipe uses Australian measuring cups and spoons.
Hi Diane! I used US measuring cups which I believe are slightly different than Australian measuring cups. There is a metric conversion button within the recipe card if you have a scale! I hope this helps 🙂
This may be the most delicious cookie dough of all time. I never thought I would say this but it is too much chocolate. I could not taste the filling – and it was delicious. I know the original cookie is all chocolate and I like it! But this needed a break. Maybe raspberry or vanilla buttercream. Could it be because I did not use premium chocolate for the coating?
Hi Louise! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed these, it is definitely for chocolate lovers! The variations you mentioned sound delicious! I think mint and orange would also be spectacular!