Old Fashioned Jam Filled Sliced Cookies

These old fashioned jam filled sliced cookies are soft and chewy and the jam becomes slightly candied which makes for a delectable bite. They taste like a cross between a sugar cookie and shortbread topped with a sweet jam which adds a fruity flavor. They are delicious and hard to eat just one!

Cookies date back to the 1600’s when cooks would test the heat of the “oven” (often made of stone) by cooking dollops of batter but the technique of creaming butter and sugar did not become well used until the 1700’s. Filling cookies with cooked fruit like jam has been noted in recipe books from the mid-1700’s!

These old fashioned sliced cookies are simple to make and contain a handful of ingredients. They can easily be dressed up for any holiday like Valentine’s with some pink chocolate drizzled over top or a drizzle of icing and a few heart shaped sprinkles tossed on them. They can be left plain as is, or the dough can even be colored. They are a wonderful addition to your table any time of the year. The options really are endless!

Let’s get started!

This cookie dough could not be simpler. First off, cream the butter and sugar together. Then add the egg and vanilla and beat well. Add flour, salt and baking powder. Mix well. If dough is too sticky, add more flour, a few tablespoons at a time.

Turn dough out onto floured surface. Work dough to bring it together. Flatten dough, fold in half, and then flatten slightly. Shape into a round.

Cut into 4 pieces.

Roll each piece out into a log. Flatten slightly then create a well in the centre, leaving the edges high. We used a bamboo straw to flatten the centre, but you can also use a round spoon handle. My daughter ‘H’ loved this step!
At this point, you can wrap up the prepared cookie dough and freeze it (add jam before baking).

You should have 4 long cookies that look like this. I baked all 4 on one sheet, but in retrospect, I’d have put 2 to a cookie sheet instead.

Fold up edges so the centre is like a trough so the jam does not run out.

Spoon 2 teaspoons jam of choice. We used 2 kinds of homemade jam. Here is the strawberry.

And here is the peach-rhubarb jam.

All ready to bake! Bake at 350F for 12 to 16 minutes or until golden brown.

Once removed from oven, let sit 5 minutes before cutting diagonally.

Cut at an angle. If removing cookies from cookie sheet when warm, remove carefully because they will break at this point. I cut one on the cutting board and cut the remainder on the cookie sheet which was much easier.

These cookies are delicious with a cup of milk or even a cup of tea or coffee.

It is the perfect afternoon snack, delicious for dessert, perfect for a tea party, excellent after school and a great treat for lunch. You will want to have lots of these on hand – they will be your new family favorite!

You can also use any flavor of jam. You can top with nuts if you so choose or drizzle with icing after baking. You can add cinnamon to the dough and top with a cooked homemade apple pie filling and then drizzled with a cinnamon glaze. You can add cocoa to the dough and then top with cherry jam before baking. Any which way you make them, these are sure to be delicious!

Our favorite is the strawberry jam filled cookie but the peach-rhubarb have an equally scrumptious flavor and taste like a summer peach wrapped up in a cookie!

• 

• 

Old Fashioned Jam Filled Sliced Cookies

3/4 cup butter
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
jam for filling

Cream butter and sugar together. Add vanilla and egg and beat well. Add flour, baking powder and salt. Stir well to incorporate the flour well. Add more flour, a spoonful at a time, if the dough is too sticky. Cut dough in 4 pieces. Roll each piece into a log, flatten slightly and make a well in the centre. Push edges up at the ends so the jam does not run out. Add 2 teaspoons of jam to each flattened log and spread evenly. Bake at 350F for 12 to 16 minutes or until golden. Do not over bake. Remove from oven and let sit 5 minutes. Cut into strips, diagonally. Let cool completely. Enjoy warm or cold. Store remaining cookies in an airtight container in the fridge.

enjoy from Our City Homestead to yours