Jelly Cookies
Submitted by jephilips
Old-fashioned jelly cookies: buttery shortbread rounds sandwiched with red raspberry jelly and dusted in powdered sugar. The kind that gets softer and better as the jelly soaks in.
YIELD
1 batchPREP
20 minCOOK
10 minREADY
8 hrsThese are jelly sandwich cookies the way home bakers used to make them, simple butter shortbread rolled and cut into rounds, sandwiched with bright red raspberry jelly, and rolled in powdered sugar. The reward for patience comes a few days later when the jelly has fully soaked into the cookie and the texture turns soft, tender and almost cake-like.
The overnight chill is non-negotiable. Four cups of flour creates a stiff dough that needs time to relax for clean rolling and cutting. Working with chilled, rested dough means thin cookies that hold their shape; skipping the rest produces tough, spread-prone cookies that lose definition in the oven.
The lightly-browned bake is intentional. These cookies should look pale, almost underbaked. The point is for the cookies to be tender and slightly sweet, providing a clean canvas for the jelly’s bright fruit flavor. Overbaked cookies are too crisp and dry to absorb the jelly properly during the sit time.
The wait is the secret. As the recipe note correctly says, these get better after a few days. The moisture from the raspberry jelly migrates into the cookies, softening them to almost-cakey tenderness while the powdered sugar coating absorbs into the surface for a snowy, less powdery look. Patience pays off.
Pro Tips
- Use cold butter cut into the flour, not softened butter. The cold-butter method produces flakier cookies.
- Roll between two sheets of parchment to prevent sticking and avoid adding too much extra flour.
- Use a 2-inch round cutter for sandwich-sized cookies. Smaller cutters produce dainty tea cookies.
- Coat with powdered sugar a second time just before serving for the freshest snowy look.
Variations
- Substitute apricot, strawberry, blackberry or fig jam for the raspberry jelly.
- Use a small heart-shaped or scalloped cutter for special occasions.
- Cut a small hole in the top cookie before baking to create a thumbprint-window where the jelly shows through.
- Drizzle melted chocolate over the assembled cookies for a fancier dessert version.
Ingredients
Directions
Combine flour, butter, eggs and sugar; beat until well mixed.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃).
Roll out chilled dough on lightly floured surface until about ¼ inch thick.
Cut with a round cookie cutter; transfer cookies to an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until very lightly browned.
Let cool on wire rack.
When cool, spread jelly between 2 cookies to make a sandwich.
Coat each cookie in powdered sugar.
Cookies taste better after a few days because the jelly absorbs into the cookie and makes them softer.
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