Raspberry Crumble Cookies

Believe it or not, Christmas is one month from today. How did that happen? It seems to sneak up on me every year! Today I am happy to share my first Christmas bake of the season with you, Raspberry Crumble Cookies.
When my family was growing up, I spent many weeks prior to Christmas baking and preparing for the holiday season. I used to freeze everything in airtight containers, ready to be enjoyed on the day, and throughout the holidays.

We didn't have a lot of money to go around back then, and so it only made sense to prepare things a little bit at a time. It also made sense time wise. Who wants to be caught having to bake your brains out at the last minute!
I also liked to give baking trays filled with a variety of cookies and bakes to family and friends for the holidays. Nobody ever turned such a gift down!
Raspberry Crumble Cookies

These melt-in-the-mouth crumble cookies are amazingly delicious with a shortbread-like texture, a sweet jam filling and a moreish buttery crumble topping.
One buttery batter is created to form both the base and the topping. Are they a tart? Are they a cookie? I say they are both!

The moreish crumble batter mixture is very easy to make. Pressed into muffin tins it forms a beautiful buttery base, ready to cup sweet raspberry jam.
Some more of that buttery batter is crumbled over top for the perfect crumbly finish.

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE RASPBERRY CRUMBLE COOKIES
A few pantry staples put together in a most delicious way. There is nothing out of the ordinary here!

1 cup (225g) butter, softened
1/3 cup (45g) icing sugar
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
2 1/4 cups (315g) all-purpose plain flour
pinch of salt
seedless raspberry jam

I take my butter out of the refrigerator early in the morning when I get up. That way it is at room temperature, which is the perfect temperature to begin making these.
I use organic granulated sugar which we get from Costco. My icing sugar or confectioner's sugar as it is also called just comes from the store.
Raspberry Crumble Cookies

If you are not fond of almond extract, you can leave it out altogether. I use half the amount the recipe calls for.
You can use any kind of jam you like in these cookies, but I think the red jams make the prettiest show. I also happen to love raspberry or strawberry jam. I use seedless jam as well, for a better presentation.
You could also use mincemeat for a really simple mincemeat tart.

HOW TO MAKE RASPBERRY CRUMBLE COOKIES
These really are some of the easiest cookies to make.

Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter a 12-cup muffin cup tin. Set aside.Cream the butter and both sugars together using an electric whisk for two to three minutes until light and creamy. Beat in both extracts.Add the flour and mix until just mostly combined. The mixture should be a bit crumbly, but it should also hold together if you squeeze the mixture in your hands. If it is too sticky add a bit more flour.Measure out about 1/3 of the mixture and reserve for the topping.

Divide the remaining mixture between the muffin cups and press into the cups, making sure you go up the sides a bit in order to create a space for the jam to go. This is the muffin tin I use. I highly recommend it.

Spoon about a TBS of jam into the center of each. Sprinkle some of the reserved crumble mixture over the top of each cookie.Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until the tops are starting to turn golden brown.Leave in the pan to cool completely before removing carefully from the pan.Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temperature. These can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months.I dusted mine with a bit of confectioner's sugar for a prettier presentation.

Try not to overdo the jam you put into each cookie. Jam really expands when heated, so less really is more. Also, you risk your cookies sticking to your pan and being difficult to remove.
Do make sure you leave them in the pan to cool completely before trying to remove them so as to prevent breakage. They tend to be a bit crumbly while still warm.

These really do melt in the mouth. They are like a shortbread cookie, only better, because of the jam. My family has always been nuts about jam in cookies, so these tasty bakes are right up our alley!
You can make them smaller if you wish and get more cookies out of them, but I find that they are just the right size for us!

Some other Christmas cookies that you might enjoy are:
MACADAMIA SHORTBREAD COOKIES - Shortbread cookies? Macadamia nuts? You can't lose. These are very simple to make and bake as well. Incredibly moreish. You have been warned.
SPECULAAS - These are my favorite of all the Christmas Cookies. Dutch Speculaas cookies, or what I grew up calling windmill cookies. They are a type of spiced shortcrust biscuit, traditionally baked for consumption on or just before the St Nicholas' feast in the Netherlands.
Yield: 12Author: Marie Rayner