Jam Filled Butter Cookies For Our Royal Wedding Tea Party

Over this past week the world has been abuzz with talk of the Royal Wedding.  What would Kate Middleton be wearing?  What would others be wearing?  What security precautions were being taken?  Who would be on the guest list?  Most importantly, what FOOD would be served?  I can't imagine the delicious dishes, pastries and delicacies that will be pouring out of the royal kitchen today.  I'm pretty positive that they will all be as amazing as Kate looked in her dress...although I can't say as much for most of the hats I saw the attending guests sporting.  Interesting choices!!

Yesterday, the thread was started in the food forum about what everyone was making in honor of the Royal Wedding.  I hadn't really thought of it before that moment, but wouldn't it be fun to throw a surprise Tea Party to surprise my Assistant Chef??  For about 2 years now she has been OBSESSED with the Disney Princesses.  She love, love, loves them.  She even tells me that when she grows up she is going to be a princess (and a chef of course!).  When the coverage started on the TV at the beginning of the week, a reporter was doing a piece on the wedding and happened to be standing in front of Buckingham Palace.  They were showing pictures of Kate, so I explained to Brenna that this lady would soon be marrying a prince and she would become a princess.  She was amazed...a REAL LIFE PRINCESS!!  I explained that Buckingham Palace was the "castle" they would live in and she asked if she could go and see it.  I told her I was sorry, but a trip to the Royal Palace was not in our budget.  BUT, I thought to myself, I could bring a little piece of the palace to her.  So it was decided...a Royal Wedding Tea Party would be held at my home the next afternoon, 12:30 sharp.  I put the word out to some friends, and even though it was last minute, I did manage to wrangle 2 other little girls into attendance.

I needed to plan a "menu" that I could make with all the ingredients I had on hand, since I had no time for a trip to the store.  I knew I wanted some type of finger sandwiches, a fruit, a smallish type cookie and some "tea".  Here was the final menu:

Finger Sandwiches: Mini Ham/Provolone and Cheese Sandwiches

Fruit: Fruit Skewers

Smallish Cookies: Jam Filled Butter Cookies I found on All Recipes

Tea: Strawberry Lemonade mixed with some Sprite

After Brenna left for preschool I got started...and boy did I have to work fast because I only had 2 hours tops to get everything ready.  The cookies were so incredibly easy to make...you can't beat a cookie with only 5 ingredients.  They were AWESOME!  They look like cute little gems and are very sweet!  I am adding these to my holiday cookie list this year.  They were kind of like a sugar cookie with a slight butter taste that definitely allowed the jam be the star of the cookie.  It was nice getting to use some of my homemade strawberry and peach jams, but I'm sure they would be equally delicious using store bought preserves.  I do have to warn you that jam heated in the oven gets really, really, REALLY hot.  Guess I should have waited to bite into one of the cookies after they cooled more than a minute.  Brenna was so surprised and all the girls had a lovely time dressing up in gowns, giggling and sipping "tea" from real china cups.

I wish all the best for the Royal Couple as they start their new lives together...I hope they were as happy today as my little girl was.

Jam Filled Butter Cookies

*I got 26 cookies from this recipe.  I think I made mine bigger than they needed to be.

3/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup white sugar

2 egg yolks

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Fruit preserves, any flavor

In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter, sugar and egg yolks.

Slowly mix in the flour, 1/4 c. at a time until dough is soft and smooth.

The finished dough.

Using a tablespoon sized measuring spoon (this will keep the cookies uniform in size) scoop out some dough.  Form them into small balls and place 2" apart on an ungreased baking sheet.

Using your thumb, gently press down leaving an indent in the cookie.  Make sure the indent is deep enough to hold the jam.

Fill in the indents with jam.  I used a baby spoon which made it really easy to fill.  Other people suggested putting the jam in a sandwich bag and snipping of the corner to make a piping bag, but this seemed like it would be more trouble than it was worth for only 26 cookies.

Bake in a 375 degree oven for 8-10 mins.  Mine cooked the whole 10 mins. and were perfectly golden brown on the bottom.  Let them rest for a few minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool.  Aren't they pretty?!?

The fruit skewers: red grapes, pineapple chunks, strawberries and apples.

My mini finger sandwiches: Sliced french bread lightly spread with margarine and layered with sliced ham and Pprovolone cheese or American cheese.  Bake under the broiler set at 400 degrees for 5 mins. and then flip and cook for an additional 3 mins.

The Mini Finger Sandwiches, sliced and placed on a pretty silver tray.

The "tea": Strawberry Lemonade and Sprite.  Sorry....I don't own a teapot!

Our Tea Party Treats.

YUMMY!!

The table all set up and ready for the Princesses.  Wish this picture wasn't so dark!  Boooo!

The beautiful Princess Brenna!

Even Prince Aiden sat in a big boy chair at the table.

Sipping her "tea".

Sipping his "tea".  Sorry....no china cup for Aiden!

The sweet Princess Rachel.

The pretty Princess Abbey!

The three little Princesses who attended the Royal Tea Party.

Thanks sister...even Ethan got the tiara.  In the words of Lady Gaga, "Don't be a drag, just be a queen!".

No "tea" for Ethan.  Maybe for the next Royal Wedding!

Recipe for: Jam Filled Butter Cookies

www.momsaysjustonebite.blogspot.com

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Jam-Filled-Butter-Cookies/Detail.aspx

To prepare: Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Recipe yields approximately 2 dozen cookies.

Ingredients

Directions

¾ c. butter, softened ½ c. white sugar 2 egg yolks 1 ¾ c. all-purpose flour Fruit preserves of your choice

1.       In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter, sugar and egg yolks. 2.       Mix in the flour ¼ c. at a time until the dough is soft and smooth. 3.       Using a tablespoon measuring spoon, form dough into balls and place on an ungreased baking sheet 2” apart. 4.       Using your thumb, gently press down, forming an indentation deep enough to fill with jam. 5.       Fill the indentations with jam. 6.       Bake in a preheated over 8-10 minutes, until bottoms are golden brown. 7.       Let rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

Cottontails

One of the things I love the most about holidays is that it gives me a really good excuse to make themed desserts.  Brenna loves arts and crafts, and cookie making is an amazing opportunity to combine her love of creating things with my love of cooking to make some really fun Easter themed cookies and some really great memories as well.  I looked on the internet and decided on some super cute Cottontails and Robin Egg Nests (3 different types mind you...because I am the world's most indecisive person).  I'll post the Nests in a separate post because I really want to get the Cottontails posted since quite a few people have asked to see them.

All 3 of my kids had a lot of fun making them.  You don't need a whole lot of ingredients for these and the dough is super easy to make.  Forming the cookies is a little tricky at first, but after a few of them it does get easier, so don't get discouraged.  Tyler was actually really good at making them...see even a 10 year old can create Cottontails.  It's kind of like playing with Play-Doh because you have to roll the dough into a ball and then into a rope...kind of like the snakes we all used to make as kids.  They had a lot of fun with the decorating part.  The colored sprinkles give them just the right Easter touch....the rainbow mix was actually Tyler's idea.  Good thinking buddy!  If you like the taste of sugar cookies, you will definitely like these cookies!

I know what you are thinking.  I can't believe they are going to eat ALL those cookies!!  While I might eat some of the cookies, I will definitely be sharing a majority of them with the neighbors and taking some to our family Easter celebration on Sunday.  My favorite thing to do might be to cook and bake, but my second favorite thing to do is share what I have made with my friends and family!!

Cottontails

*Recipe yields approximately 2 dozen cookies.

3/4 c/ butter, softened

2/3 c. white sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp. almond extract

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

Colored sugar

Miniature Marshmallows

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar using an electric hand mixer.

Add the egg and almond extract and blend well.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour and baking powder.  Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until a smooth dough is formed.

Don't be surprised if you have to use your hands to mix at the end.  These are very hands on cookies!!

Roll 1 tbsp. of dough into a ball using the palms of your hands.

Just like playing with Play-Doh!

Roll each ball into a 5 1/2" rope...just like a Play-Doh snake!  It should look something like this.

It should not, however, end up looking like this! =)

Nice try Assistant Chef...try again!

Fold the dough rope in half.

Gently twist the rope twice to form the rabbit.  Can you see the little bunny yet?? 

Even Aiden played with the dough...although it was admittedly hard to keep him from eating it.

Trying to roll the dough!  He's still in training!

Tyler on the other hand gets a gold star!

Rolling it into a rope.  His art teacher should be proud!

It took me a good 4 or 5 tries to get my first cookie from not ripping apart.  Tyler only needed one try!  I was amazed.  What technique!

In a small bowl, place some colored decorating sugar.

Gently press the cookie into the sprinkles to coat well.

Place the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet 1" apart from each other.

Brenna decorating her "Cottontail".  You REALLY have to use your imagination for hers!

Hmmmmm....which cookie can I steal first???

Bake in a 325 degree oven for 15 mins.

Remove from the oven and immediately place one miniature marshmallow on the bottom part of each cookie. 

Return to the oven for an additional minute to slightly melt the marshmallow.

Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet until slightly cooled.  Then gently transfer to a plate to cool completely.

The finished Cottontails.  Cute!

Recipe for: Cottontails

www.momsaysjustonebite.blogspot.com

To prepare: Preheat oven to 325°.  Recipe yields approximately 2 dozen cookies.

Ingredients

Directions

¾ c. unsalted butter, softened 2/3 c. white sugar 1 egg ½ tsp. almond extract 2 c. all-purpose flour 1 tsp. baking powder Colored sugar Miniature marshmallows

1.       In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar using an electric hand mixer. 2.       Add the egg and almond extract and blend well. 3.       In a separate bowl, combine the flour and baking powder. 4.       Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix well until dough is smooth. 5.       With the palms of your hands, shape a tablespoon of dough into a ball.  Gently roll the ball into a 5 ½” rope.  Fold the dough in half and gently twist twice to form the shape of a rabbit. 6.       Gently press one side of the cookie into a bowl of colored sugar. 7.       Place the cookies 1” apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. 8.       Bake in a preheated oven for 15 mins. 9.       Remove baking sheet and immediately place 1 miniature marshmallow on the bottom part of the cookie. 10.   Return to the oven for an additional minute to slightly melt the marshmallows. 11.   Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet until slightly cool. 12.   Transfer cookies to a plate to cool completely.



Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies

My husband's birthday was this month and Brenna and I wanted to make something special for him for dinner, because at my house, food equals love!  I asked him what he wanted for dinner and what kind of cake he wanted.  He chose tacos for the main dish and said he didn't want any cake.  WHAT?!?  No cake?!?  Unheard of.  So in order to honor his wishes we decided we would make some type of cookie...he never said no cookies!  I found a couple of recipes that looked intriguing and decided to just combine parts of them, add a few things we had in the fridge that needed to be used up and see what we came up with.  Drum roll please...the Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookie was born.  These sandwich cookies have a peanut butter cream cheese filling and taste like a glorified Nutter Butter cookie...which as an added bonus just happen to be one of my husband's favorite cookies!  They are pretty rich and sweet, but so incredibly good!  I love sweets and even I couldn't eat more than 1 in a sitting...plus I had to have a glass of milk.  The kids loved them and even my husband was glad I ignored the no cake request.  If he had requested a cake I would have probably had to make a boring cherry chip cake (yuck!).  These cookies are 100 times better!  Cherry chip what?!?  Exactly!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies

*Makes approximately 17 sandwich cookies

1/2 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. creamy peanut butter

1/2 c. white sugar

1/2 c. packed brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 egg

3/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. quick cooking oats

3 tbsp. butter, softened

1/2 c. creamy peanut butter

4 oz. cream cheese

2 1/2 tbsp. french vanilla coffee creamer

1 c. powdered sugar

The Assistant Chef preparing Daddy's surprise cookies!  She was very excited!

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, peanut butter, brown sugar, white sugar and vanilla extract until smooth.

She got to mix first with the whisk.  Then I helped using the electric hand mixer.  I personally think the hand mixer is easier, but that's just me.

Add the egg and blend well.

The peanut butter mixture.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the peanut butter mixture.  I'm not sure why she opted for the "spoonful by spoonful method" vs the "dump whole bowl method".

Assistant Chef mixing the batter.

Almost done!

Add the oats and mix well.



Using a tablespoon sized measuring spoon, scoop out even amounts of batter and using your hands roll into balls.  Place on a greased baking sheet.



Using a glass cup, flatten the cookies into uniform circles about 1/4" thick.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 mins.  Remove from oven and let stand one minute on the cookie sheet.  Transfer to wire racks to cool.

In a small bowl, combine the butter, peanut butter, cream cheese and coffee creamer.

Using a hand mixer, blend well until very smooth.

Add the powdered sugar and blend well.

Place cookies upside down on a plate.  Place a generous amount of the filling on each cookie.

Top with another cookie and press down gently, spreading the filling evenly.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies!

Happy Birthday!

Recipe for: Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies

To prepare: Preheat the oven to 350° and lightly grease a cookie sheet.  Recipe yields approximately 17 sandwich cookies.

Ingredients

Directions

½ c. butter, softened     ½ c. creamy peanut butter     ½ c. white sugar     ½ c. packed brown sugar     1 tsp. vanilla extract     1 egg     ¾ c. all-purpose flour     ½ tsp. baking soda     ¼ tsp. baking powder     ½ tsp. salt     1 c. quick cooking oats     3 tbsp. butter, softened     ½ c. creamy peanut butter     4 oz. cream cheese     2 ½ tbsp. vanilla coffee creamer      1 c. powdered sugar

1.       In a large bowl, cream together the butter, peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar and vanilla using an electric hand mixer. 2.       Add the egg and blend well. 3.       In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. 4.       Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well. 5.       Add the oats and mix well. 6.       Using a tablespoon sized measuring spoon, scoop out even amounts of batter and using your hands roll into balls.  Place on the prepared baking sheet. 7.       Using a glass cup, gently flatten each ball into a ¼” thick circle. 8.       Bake in a preheated oven for 10 mins.  Let cookies rest for one minute on the cookie sheet before removing to wire racks to cool. 9.   In a small bowl make the filling by creaming together the butter, peanut butter, cream cheese and coffee creamer until smooth. 10. Add the powdered sugar and blend until smooth. 11. Place one cookie upside down on a plate. 12. Add a generous scoop of filling onto the center of the cookie. 13. Top with a second cookie and gently press down,  evenly spreading the filling between the two. 14. Repeat steps 11-13 until all the cookies are used up.