delightful, sweet, hallongrottor cookies!

the other day, i was in a baking mood (as seems to happen frequently when i'm procrastinating...), and i decided to make another swedish treat.  hallongrottor, or raspberry thumbprint cookies as you may know them, are soft, buttery shortbread cookies that have a delicious drop of raspberry jam in their centers.  they are really very quick and easy to make, keep well in a cool place, and definitely satisfy that sweet tooth :)

*swedish lesson!: those silly swedes call our thumbprints "hallongrottor", which really means "raspberry caves", after the little well of raspberry preserves in the middle of the cookie.  how sweet!*

here's what you need for around 30 cookies:

-1 cup of softened butter (room temp if possible)

-2 cups of flour

-2/3 c. of granulated sugar

-1/2 tsp. baking powder

-1 tsp. cinnamon

-1/2 tsp. almond extract (this isn't traditional, but i love raspberry and almond together!)

-your favorite raspberry preserves

first things first, cream the butter and the sugar in a bowl with a big spoon.  this is why you need room temperature butter-- so everything mixes up well.  don't use melted butter or your dough won't turn out with the right consistency!  

next, add the almond extract.  as i mentioned above, this is not a traditional ingredient in the dough, but i really do love raspberry and almond together in just about anything!  so this is optional-- put it in or leave it out, whichever you choose!

next, prepare the dry ingredients for mixing.  you'll need two level cups of all purpose flour, 2/3 cups of granulated sugar (as much as 3/4 c. if you like your shortbread really sweet), 1 tsp of cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp. of baking powder.  stir the dry gently in to the butter and sugar until everything comes together in a smooth dough.  throw this in the fridge for half an hour or so, just so the butter can firm up before you start to make the cookies!

after the dough has chilled, take it out of the fridge and split it in half.  take each half of the dough and roll it in to a long log shape, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, or smaller if you'd like smaller cookies. once your dough is in this form, cut half inch slices and line them up on a baking sheet with some room in between.  check out these cuties:

next comes the fun part: the thumbprint!  i actually use my pointer finger with these cookies because they are a little too small for my thumb.  in any case, push down lightly on the cookie and make a small indentation in the center.  this is where the preserves go :)

last step before baking, the raspberry!  take some of your preserves and stir it around until its a little looser than regular jam.  with a tiny spoon, fill the "caves" you made in the dough.  

finally-- the oven!  bake at 350 for about 12 minutes, making sure to keep a close eye on the cookies.  they are full of buttery goodness, so they have a tendency to burn if you're not careful!  let them cool completely before you enjoy them (i knowwww, its such a hardship!) and store the leftovers... on the off chance that there are any :)

enjoy your little raspberry caves!