Imagine the smile on unsuspecting guests faces as they take their first bite, the initial sensation is of the crisper sugar-coated cookie edges and an unexpectedly intense chocolatey rush. Then you sink into a soft, smoooooth, subtly berry tinted filling that contrasts beautifully. Truly addicting let me tell you! Oh and they are just so pretty :)
Sadly these really are the most fiddly sticky downright stubborn things to make that I have ever experienced, kinda backwards as I was expecting the Almond Tart to be the pain in the derriere not these cute innocent looking things! I learnt some tricks along the way to make the process a little less expletive-inducing and will include these in the recipe/notes below. The problem is the dough really is not made for stuffing, it's a pretty soft mix that does set up alright after a good chill but as soon as you start to roll it in your mitts it attaches itself to everything! Then try locking in a blob of liquidy filling in the middle of a squished sticky ball, its a learning curve I can tell you!
Click on any photo to enlarge. Check out the sticky paws in the second photo! Although please ignore my sausage fingers :)
Adapted from Buns In My Oven
Made 24 cookies using balls slightly smaller than suggested
For the Cookies
1/2 cup (4oz) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup white (caster) sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
extra sugar for rolling
For the Filling
4oz cream cheese
1/4 cup powdered (icing) sugar
2 tsp seedless raspberry jam*
Beat together the butter and sugar for the cookies until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla, beat until smooth
Sieve in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Mix until well combined
Put the bowl of dough in the fridge to chill thoroughly
Beat all the filling ingredients together
Preheat the oven to 350F/180C and line baking sheets with parchment paper
To assemble: take a golf ball sized chunk of dough, roll it in your hands to form a ball and then flatten to form a disc**
Place a teaspoon of the filling into the centre, close the disc around the filling, roll it into a ball and then put in a dish containing the extra sugar - coat well ***
Put the cookie balls on the lined sheets 2 inches apart and bake for 10-12 minutes
Cool at room temperature for at least 15 minutes, before cooling for at least 30 minutes in the fridge
Notes
*I only had seeded raspberry conserves so sieved the it before using. I found I had lots of filling left over probably due to making slightly smaller cookies. Pleeeassseee don't throw it though! It's utterly delicious as a dip for fresh strawberries :)
**This is where it gets interesting! After a while the dough begins to soften and get more sticky so I ended up keeping it in the fridge and using it from there. May seem a bit annoying but it definitely helped
Flattening it into a disc is easier said than done..i found rather than squishing it, which just fixed it onto my hand, that having it on one palm and slapping it flat with the other worked a bit better for me
***I had to use less than a teaspoon to even get the dough to remotely close around it. Even then you may find this tricky, I just did a kind of botch job then patched up holes with a bit more cookie dough. Don't over fuss the ball then, if you do it is more likely to burst open. Just chuck it in the rolling sugar, making sure its well coated, and if there are any bits that look like they could leak just make sure they are on the underneath of the cookie when you place them on the sheet
Click for a nice little printable :)
