On a side note, Karen, my husband and I went to Locanda Verde Saturday night. Tough decision on those desserts. We had the hazelnut semi-freddo and, on the bartender’s recommendation, the lemon tart. Phenomenal! Thanks again.

As far as the filling, it is quite loose immediately after it is made, but it will set up thicker at room temperature after a couple of hours. I also have the option in the recipe of making it ahead of time and refrigerating it. The filling then will be quite stiff, and should be left to come to a cool room temperature before trying to spread it in between the cookies.

To make a thicker filling, you can substitute a semisweet or bittersweet chocolate for the milk chocolate or add an ounce or two of milk chocolate to the original recipe. Adding extra sugar will actually make the filling softer. With more chocolate, it will still take some time for the chocolate to set up and the filling to become thick.

I hope this has helped!
Karen DeMasco
author of The Craft of Baking

Second, the filling is fairly soft and gooey at room temperature (uh, oh, light-bulb moment–maybe that’s why they’re supposed to be tiny, one-bite cookies). Anyhow, would adding more confectioners sugar firm the filling up? If not, are there other proportions to play with? Darker chocolate? Less peanut butter?

Thanks!