Valentine’s Day Cookies

Delicious Valentine’s Day Cookies made of a yummy shortbread dough, with strawberry jam sandwiched in between.

This shortbread cookie recipe is just in time for Valentine’s Day, anniversaries, wedding showers or save it even for Mother’s Day. They store really well – so you can make them in advance and serve them on that special day. And, how cute is the heart cutout?

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Soften 1 cup strawberry/raspberry jam or thick preserve or jelly by warming it a little.

Mix together the 1 and half cups of softened butter, 1 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract until just combined.

Add 3 cups plain flour, 2 tbs warm water and a pinch of salt and mix on low speed until the dough comes together in a mass.

Place the dough on your work surface and shape into a flat disk. Cover with cling film and place in the fridge for half an hour.

Get the dough out, roll it into a rectangle with 1/2 centimetre thickness. Using a heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut hearts out of the dough. Divide the cookies into half (may be 10 each) So now you have 10 complete cookies and 10 with heart-shaped cutouts in the centre.

Using a smaller cookie cutter, make smaller hearts in the middle of half of the cookies.

Place cookies on a tray lined with baking paper and chill for 15 minutes before baking. Bake the cookies for 20 – 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown.

Allow the cookies to cool. Spread the red jam on each of the 10 full cookies. Sandwich these 10 cookies with the other 10 cookies (the ones with the hearts cut out from the centre)

Place them on a tray. Dust the cookies with confectioners’ sugar.

By Christ & Co.