Amish Raisin Pocket Cookies
Soft Amish-style cookies filled with a thick, lightly sweetened raisin and lemon mixture. Each cookie consists of two tender rounds enclosing a fruity centre, making a comforting treat for coffee, high tea or gift-giving.
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- electric mixer
- medium saucepan
- Mixing bowls
- Pastry cutter, round
- Rolling Pin
- Sieve
- Wooden spoon
Ingredients
For the Cookie Dough
- 17 g vegetable shortening
- 33 g granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons beaten egg
- 20 ml milk
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 70 g all-purpose flour
- ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- Cooking spray
For the Raisin Filling
- 27 g raisins finely chopped
- 17 g granulated sugar
- 20 ml water
- ½ teaspoon all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
For the Raisin Filling
- Place the chopped raisins, sugar, water, flour and lemon juice in a medium saucepan.
- Bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium heat.
- Stir constantly until the filling becomes thick.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat.
- Allow the filling to cool completely.
For the Cookie Dough
- Place the vegetable shortening and sugar in a mixing bowl.
- Beat with an electric mixer until light and creamy.
- Add the beaten egg, milk and vanilla extract.
- Beat until evenly combined.
- Sift the flour, baking soda and baking powder into a separate bowl.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture.
- Mix until a soft dough forms.
- Cover the dough.
- Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
For Shaping and Baking
- Preheat the oven to 175°C.
- Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
- Roll the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 6 mm.
- Cut 8 equal rounds from the dough.
- Place 4 rounds on the prepared baking sheet.
- Spoon 1 teaspoon raisin filling into the centre of each round.
- Make a small hole in the centre of each remaining dough round.
- Place one perforated round over each filled cookie.
- Leave the edges unpressed so steam can escape through the centre opening.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until lightly golden.
- Transfer the cookies to a wire rack.
- Allow them to cool before serving.
Notes & Wine Advice
Serving Suggestions
Serve the cookies with tea, coffee or a glass of cold milk. They also work well on a high-tea platter or packaged in a small box as a homemade gift.Recipe Notes
Allow the raisin filling to cool completely before assembling the cookies. Warm filling can soften the dough and make it difficult to handle. The small opening in the upper cookie allows steam to escape during baking.Variations
Add ground cinnamon, orange zest or a pinch of cloves to the raisin filling. Chopped dates, dried figs or dried cranberries can replace part of the raisins. Lard may be used instead of vegetable shortening, but the cookies will no longer be vegetarian.Storage
Store completely cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. Refrigerate them when keeping them longer. The cookies can be frozen for up to one month with baking paper between the layers.Wine Advice
A gently sweet Riesling complements the raisins and subtle lemon flavour. Moscato is another suitable choice for dessert or high tea.Nutrition values
Serving: 1 filled cookie | Calories: 180 kcal | Carbohydrates: 33 g | Protein: 3 g | Fat: 4 g | Saturated Fat: 1 g | Sodium: 65 mg | Sugar: 19 g