vanilla bean sandwich cookies

Summer solstice happened last Friday and since this blog is part baking part weather updates, let’s talk summer.  I am undeniably my happiest self in summer.  It’s when I do my best long weekending, best sundressing, and best aperol-spritzing.Everyone gets a little looser in the summer and as someone who is quite tightly wound to begin with, I love this.  People leave work early on Fridays, potato chips and potato salad can be considered a balanced meal, and tracking sand everywhere is kind of charming.

It’s also the perfect season to sandwich summery jams between two dense and intensely buttery cookies. This time I used peach bellini jam from trader joe’s, making this cookie like a mini peach pie with exactly the ratio of crust to filling I can get down with.  The cookies are a simple shortbread and I highly recommend using Deb’s cookie method for rolling out and cutting since the high butter content makes this dough a doozy to handle at room temperature.  Since the cookie is so simple but so good, it’s one of those times when european butter and real vanilla bean paste are worth the cost.I’m thinking these would also make truly adorable ice cream sandwiches with peach ice cream and a quick roll in a dish of sprinkles.Will report back.

vanilla bean sandwich cookies

(shortbread cookie from a spicy perspective)

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 heaping teaspoon vanilla bean paste

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 1/2 cups flour

jam of choice

directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.  These cookies don’t spread so they can be pretty close together.

Cream your butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a stand mixer until light and fluffy.  Scrap down the bowl a few times as you go so you don’t end up with denser butter and sugar at the bottom of the bowl.  Slowly add in your flour until just incorporated.  I mixed together the dough by hand at the end to keep it from getting tough.

Roll out your dough between two sheets of parchment to 1/8 inch thick.  Honestly who knows what that looks like, just eyeball it.  Store this sheet in the fridge for a few minutes until the dough is chilled enough to handle.  Cut out your circles of dough using a 2 inch cookie cutter.

Bake for 12-14 minutes until the edges are lightly golden, rotating the pan halfway through so they bake evenly.

Let cool and pipe a teaspoon of jam onto the centers of half the cookies.  Press the remaining cookies on as tops and admire your handiwork.  These will set together nicely with the jam softening the cookies together a bit.

Enjoy.