eat make read

One of my favorite things from my trip to Michigan was visiting a few farmers markets. There are farms galore in the Southwest region of the state where I’m from, so the market was lush with everything from peaches and peppers to flowers and meat… basically it was pretty dreamy. One of the fruits my particular region is known for is blueberries and after reuniting with them I remembered why. They’re the perfect juicy burst of sweet and sour. I immediately snapped up a bundle and started daydreaming about what I could make (that is if I didn’t eat them all before that). Well, I landed on these little beauties, blueberry cookie sandwiches.

I wanted to keep the blueberry filling super simple to allow the blueberry goodness to really shine. I simply added the juice of one lime to a saucepan full of blueberries along with a bit of sugar. I left that to reduce on the stove top while I whipped up a simple cookie dough, adding zest from the lime to add a little extra zing. Once both the dough and the filling were done, I put them both in the fridge to cool off.

After baking the cookies for about 10 minutes, I began making the lovely little sandwiches. A spoon full of blueberry goodness dolloped onto the underside of one cookie, then topped by another golden disc. Pretty soon I hand a table full of cookies that were pretty hard to resist, so you can bet I helped myself to one. Ahh, yes! They are a delicious treat, buttery and rich on the outside, bursting with flavor on the inside. They were worth turning the oven on in summer.

Blueberry Cookie Sandwiches
makes about 30 cookie sandwiches

Butter Cookie Dough
adapted from Martha Stewart

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon lime zest

Preheat oven to 350°
1
In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, and salt until light and fluffy.
2
Add yolks, one at a time, scraping the bowl after each addition.
3
Add vanilla.
4
With mixer on low, add flour; mix just until combined.
5
Wrap in plastic; chill until firm, about 1 hour. To make ahead: Refrigerate up to 2 weeks, or freeze up to 3 months.
6
Roll out and cut into small circles. I used the top of my cocktail shaker but you could also use the top of a ball jar lid (for slightly larger cookies) or any other round cookie cutter you may have.
7
Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.

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Blueberry Filling

2 pints blueberries
juice of 1 lime
1/2 cup sugar

1
Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
2
Cook, stirring occasionally, until blueberries have broken down and created a thick jam, about 20-30 minutes.
3
Cool filling completely before assembling cookies.

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To assemble cookies:

Place about 1 Tablespoon jam onto underside of 1 cookies. Top with a second cookie and repeat until all cookies are used.