.

It was a mistake to make these cookies. It was an even bigger mistake to make these cookies when no one else was home.

But it’s okay, because even though no one’s here to hold me accountable (“Mom, you had a cookie! Can I have one too?”) I’m making myself be very, very good. But I still won’t tell you how many I’ve had.

Anyway, making these cookies for this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie was a last minute decision. I love the TWD project and didn’t want to be kicked out because I haven’t participated as often as I should be. So, after double checking this week’s recipe (which was chosen and is hosted by Ugly Dude Food), I determined that even though I didn’t have the called-for ground hazelnuts (which I don’t like anyway) or raspberry jam, I could make do.

In place of the hazelnuts I ground my own walnuts and used strawberry jam. And, once again, my beloved almond extract made an appearance, which made me very happy.

My dough, like many others have noted, was also pretty dry and crumbly. I added about a tablespoon of milk during the mixing process which really helped hold things together. I also refrigerated the dough for about an hour before I rolled out the first batch, and put it back in the fridge while each batch was in the oven.

And even though I mixed the dough a heck of a lot more than just to get the ingredients combined, the cookies still turned out very light and shortbread-y, so keep in mind that it’s pretty forgiving even if you have to beat it into submission.

Let’s get on with some pictures: Read More