Twirls of Flavour

Raspberries are one of my favourite fruits and to have the same flavour in a cookie that was something I had to try! I found the recipe for these Raspberry Almond Twirls in the Better Homes & Gardens baking book and one look at the picture; I went right ahead and baked it. They are very festive and tasty too. I had no idea Raspberries and Almonds went so well together, till I took a bite of this.

Raspberry Almond Twirls:

You will need: Makes 50-55 cookies

½ Cup Butter, at room temperature

1 Cup Sugar

½ tsp Baking powder

1 Egg

3 tbsp Milk

¼ tsp Vanilla extract

2 ¾ cups All purpose flour

For the filling:

½ cup Raspberry jam

1 ½ tsp Cornstarch

½ cup Almonds, toasted and ground

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar and baking powder. Beat until combined. Add the egg, milk and the vanilla extract. Slowly add in the flour and beat to make a stiff dough. If your mixer is straining to mix the dough, bear in the remaining flour by hand using a wooden spoon.Cover and chill for an hour.

For the filling, in a pan combine the raspberry jam and the cornstarch. Stir until bubbly and thickened. Remove from heat, add the ground almonds, stir and cover. Let cool completely.

Divide dough in half. Roll out each part into a 12x8 rectangle on a wax paper. Divide filling and spread evenly on each of the rectangles. From the short side, roll each up, taking the help of the wax paper. Remove wax paper as you roll. Moisten and seal edges. Cover in clear plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 – 6 hours.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Line a cookie sheet with foil. Grease foil lightly. Cut the chilled dough into ¼ inch thick discs, place on cookie sheet and bake for 9 minutes till lightly browned and sides are firm. Let cool on wire racks before storing in an air tight container.

These cookies are my entry to the Holiday Cookie Baking Event hosted by Sharmi at Neivedyam.