Filled Cookies

by LeAnn R. Ralph  

When I was a kid growing up on our dairy farm in Wisconsin 40 years ago, cookies with a date filling were my dad's favorite kind. Here is the recipe.

• 3/4 cup butter or margarine (softened)
• 3/4 cup shortening
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 5 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• several tablespoons of milk if the dough seems too dry
• Jam: blackberry, black raspberry, strawberry, red raspberry, plum
conserve, apple conserve, or date filling (recipes for plum and apple
conserve and date filling are included below.)
 

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter, margarine, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. If the dough is too dry, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of milk. If the dough seems too wet, add 1/4 or 1/2 cup of flour.

Roll out dough. Use either a small round cookie cutter or one large round cutter. Place cookies on an ungreased baking sheet. Put one tea-\spoon of jam (or other filling) in the middle of the smaller rounds or off to one side of the larger rounds. Place another small round on top of the small rounds; fold the larger rounds in half. Use a fork to crimp the edges together and to poke holes in the top. Bake for 15 minutes, or until light brown.

This recipe makes about six dozen filled cookies.

The recipe can also be used to make cut-out Christmas cookies frosted with colored icing.

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~ Plum Conserve ~

If plum conserve is made specifically for filling cookies, store any that remains in the refrigerator and use on toast or biscuits. The conserve can also be sealed in pint jars. (This recipe makes about three pints.)

• 8 to 10 fresh, large, ripe plums
• 1/2 cup of water
• 4 cups of sugar
• 2 cups of raisins
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice

Pit the plums and chop into small pieces. Place in a large saucepan and add the sugar and water. Boil for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the lemon juice, raisins and walnuts and cook for 10 minutes longer, stirring constantly. (Note: Recipe can also be made using 3 cups of chopped apples instead of  plums. Add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.)

~ Date Filling ~

• 3 cups chopped dates
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 2/3 cups water
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Put all ingredients into a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened (10 or 15 minutes).

LeAnn R. Ralph is the author of the books "Cream of the Crop (More True Stories from  Wisconsin Farm)" (trade paperback, Sept. 2005); "Christmas in Dairyland (True Stories from a Wisconsin Farm" (trade paperback 2003); "Give Me a Home Where the Dairy Cows Roam" (trade paperback 2004); "Preserve Your Family History (A Step-by-Step Guide for Interviewing Family Members and Writing Oral Histories" (e-book 2004). You are invited to read sample chapters, order books and sign up for the free newsletter, Rural Route 2 News  -- http://ruralroute2.com