When I was little, in the 60's, my grandma made 2 cookies at christmas one she called nut bitter and the other apple bitter....I never liked the nut bitter, but am looking for the apple bitter. I don't know why it was called 'bitter' because it is sweet. The cookie was like a sandwich. The sandwich part was like a thick sugar cookie with a sweet apple filling.....does anyone have this recipe?
Apple Butter Cookies
From Grandma's Wartime Baking Book: World War II and the Way We Baked by Joanne Lamb Hayes (St. Martin's Press, 2003).
Sweet and spicy home-canned or commercially-prepared apple butter makes an instant filling for these old-fashioned filled cookies.
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups unsifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable shortening or softened butter
(or a mixture)
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup apple butter
1 tablespoon granulated sugar, optional
Directions
Grease two large baking sheets. Combine flour, soda and salt in a small bowl.
Beat the brown sugar and shortening in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy; beat in the egg and vanilla. Add dry ingredients and buttermilk all at once; beat on low speed just until thoroughly blended. Form dough into a flattened ball. Roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness between pieces of floured wax paper and cut out with 2 1/2-inch round cutters. Reroll to make a total of 48 rounds.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Divide apple butter onto the centers of 24 rounds. Moisten edges around apple butter and top each with another dough round. Press edge of each cookie with the tines of a fork to seal, and place on greased baking sheets. Sprinkle tops with granulated sugar, if desired.
Bake cookies until golden brown at the edges, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool completely on wire racks. Serve or pack in an airtight container.
Suggestions
Makes 24 cookies.