Dates at market in Kuwait
By Cat, May 2015 (photo, right, from Wikimedia Commons)
- See also: 1. Cookies Menu; 2. Dessert Fillings Menu; 3. Mincemeat Filling
- Includes: 1. Filled Cookie Dough Version 1; 2. Version 2; 3. Links to recipes for fillings
I was moving my mincemeat pie recipe from my old site to this blog, when I remembered the date-filled cookies I used to make during the Thanksgiving/Christmas holidays. They would be equally delicious filled with my mincemeat filling.
Filled Cookies
This recipe is adapted from Home Baking Made Easy, by Virginia Roberts, Director Occident Home Baking Institute and Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook (see Beloved Cookbooks for more about these books). The original recipes use ‘shortening’. The original use of the term ‘shortening’ meant rendered animal fat such as lard or duck/goose fat. But modern shortening is made from hydrogenated vegetable fat (chemically altered oils that are primarily trans-fats). I shun vegetable shortening, but recommend lard or goose/duck fat. However, I prefer to use butter or mix of butter and lard. I also prefer to use a mix of whole wheat pastry flour (or whole spelt) and unbleached white flour.
Filled Cookie Dough, Version 1
This recipe is less sweet than the version II recipe. I would recommend this for the Apple, Date and Raisin Filling, or Date Filling. Makes 3 dozen cookies
Ingredients & Equipment:
- Batter:
- 3 cups whole wheat pastry or whole spelt* flour
- 3 – 3 ½ cups unbleached white flour (wheat or spelt*)
- ¼ cup butter or lard
- 2 cups Rapadura sugar (or 1 cup white cane sugar and 1 cup brown cane sugar)
- 3 eggs
- ¾ cup sour milk or buttermilk (to sour fresh milk, add 2 – 3 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice to ¾ cup fresh milk)
- 1 ½ tsp real vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 3 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp unrefined sea salt
- Filling:
- 1 – 1 ½ cup date filling; apple, date and raisin filling (below); or mincemeat filling; Apple-Nut Filling;
- Equipment:
- 2 large mixing bowls (or 1 large bowl and stand-mixer bowl
- wooden spoon or stand mixer
- pastry cloth and rolling pin sock
- rolling pin
- round cookie cutter or doughnut cutter
- baking sheet(s)
Method:
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease baking sheet(s) with butter or lard.
- Dough: Add eggs and beat well.
- If using fresh milk, stir in vinegar/lemon juice and let rest 5 minutes until the milk has thickened and soured.
- Sift 6 cups of flour, soda, baking powder and salt into another large bowl.
- Cream butter or lard; add sugar gradually, creaming well.
- Add flour mixture alternately with the soured milk, mixing well after each addition. Add more flour if dough is too thin to roll; add more soured milk if dough is too thick to mix.
- Shape cookies: Flour pastry cloth and rolling pin. Roll half the dough to ¼” thickness.
- Cut dough with floured cookie cutter. Place half the rounds on buttered baking sheet, about ¾” apart.
- Place a teaspoonful of filling on each round, leaving ¾” of cookie bare all around the filling.
- Roll remaining dough as before. Cut with floured cookie cutter, then ut a small round hole in center; or cut with a doughnut cutter (with the center hole cutter in place). Place a round on top of each mound of filling.
- Moisten top of bottom round then press top round to the bottom round using a fork or tip of a teaspoon, or your fingers.
- Bake until delicately browned, about 10 – 12 minutes.
- Let cool 1 minute on baking sheet, then remove to cooling rack.
Filled Cookie Dough, Version 2
This recipe is sweeter than the version 1 recipe above. I would recommend this for the Mincemeat or Date Filling. This is the version I use for my Date-Filled Holiday Cookies. Makes 3 dozen cookies
Ingredients & Equipment:
- 1 cup butter, lard, or a butter/lard mixture
- 1 cup Rapadura Sugar (or ½ cup each white cane sugar and brown cane sugar)
- 1 egg
- 3 Tbsp milk or buttermilk
- 1 tsp real vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry (or whole spelt) flour
- 1 ¾ – 2 cups unbleached white flour (wheat or spelt)
- ½ tsp unrefined sea salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- unbleached white flour (for rolling)
- Equipment:
- large mixing bowl (or stand-mixer bowl_
- medium mixing bowl
- wooden spoon or stand mixer
- pastry cloth and rolling pin sock
- rolling pin
- 2 ½” round cookie cutter or doughnut cutter
- baking sheet(s)
Method:
- Preheat oven to 375°F; do not grease baking sheet(s).
- Dough:
- Cream butter/lard and sugar until fluffy.
- Add egg, milk and vanilla., and beat well.
- Sift together dry ingredients into medium bowl, then add to the butter mixture in batches, mixing well after each
- Chill 1 hour before rolling.
- Shape cookies: Flour pastry cloth and rolling pin. Roll half the dough to ⅛” thickness.
- Cut dough with floured cookie cutter. Place half the rounds on un-buttered baking sheet, about ¾” apart.
- Place a teaspoonful of filling on each round, leaving ¾” of cookie bare all around the filling.
- Cut a small round hole in center of remaining rounds (or you could use a doughnut cutter for these rounds). Place a round on top of each mound of filling.
- Moisten top of bottom round then press top round to the bottom round using a fork or your fingers.
- Bake about 10 – 12 minutes until delicately browned.
- Let cool 1 minute on baking sheet, then remove to cooling rack.
Filling
Use any fruit or mincemeat filling. Thick jams or preserves can also be used. The following are fillings I like:
- Date Filling (I use this for my holiday filled cookies)
- Apple, Date & Raisin Filling
- Mincemeat Filling
