September 16, 2013

Melting Moments - #CreativeCookieExchange





Melting Moments how do I love thee, let me count the ways - melt-in-your-mouth, buttery, rich crumbs that shatter on the first bite, sweet vanilla buttercream, tart raspberry jam.  This cookie is definitely a match made in heaven, and that is why I choose it as my first post for the Creative Cookie Exchange.

The Creative Cookie Exchange was established by Laura (The Spiced Life) and Rebecka (At Home with Rebecka), with the idea that we will all have fun baking cookies together. Each month an ingredient or theme will be selected and then we will all be baking some amazing cookies and sharing them with you on our blogs.

The theme selected for this month is Back to School.  Whether it is a cookie that I have packed in their lunch boxes, or a special after school treat I just love making cookies for my girls.  They are in high school now, and have very busy schedules, but I just love the idea that I have sent them to school with a little treat that will remind them that I am thinking about them.  It is also a lot of fun to make a double batch and send the cookies to school for them to share with their friends (and it removes the temptation from me ;)).






The Melting Moment is a cookie that is very popular in Australia, where you will find them in grocery stores, cake shops, and cafes.  There appears to be two schools of thought with regards to the addition of jam, with some people stating that if you add jam it is actually called a Monte Carlo.  I saw this cookie being made on MasterChef Australia (which in my opinion is far superior to the format of the US MasterChef - the contestants are much nicer to one another and the judges more supportive) and I decided to add the raspberry jam as per the recipe, and I am glad that I did.

The only change I made to the original recipe (besides converting it from metric to imperial) was to make the cookies a bit smaller, although after sandwiching them together, I realized that I should have flattened them just a little more because they tended to roll around the plate. Next time I would flatten half of the cookies, and use a fork to indent the rest.  Also, I choose to make the raspberry jam, but you could certainly use store-bought, or even change the flavor if you wanted.  The recipe for the jam does produce more than enough to fill the cookies, so if you do not want leftovers, cut this in half. The recipe made about individual 22 cookies, so 11 when sandwiched together.




Melting Moments
(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients
Biscuits ~
  • ¾ cup butter (1½ sticks)
  • ½ cup powdered sugar, sifted
  • ½ cup custard powder (or cornstarch)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • powdered sugar, to serve
Vanilla Buttercream ~
  • 7 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
  • 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
Raspberry Jam ~
  • 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries
  • 1¼ cups sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoon gelatin powder

Preparation
Biscuits ~
  1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line two oven trays with Silpats or parchment paper.
  2. In the bowl of an an electric mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter for two minutes.
  3. Add powdered sugar and custard powder (or cornstarch) and mix until combined. 
  4. Sift the baking powder and flour together then add to the dough and mix well, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beaters as needed. 
  5. Roll dough into 1 tablespoon-size balls, place on a baking paper lined baking tray and press each ball with a fork to leave an indent. 
  6. Bake biscuits for 14 minutes or until light golden. 
  7. Stand on trays 5 minutes to cool then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  8. Make buttercream and jam while waiting for the cookies to cool.
  9. Place a spoonful of cooled jam on the base of half the biscuits. 
  10. Pipe buttercream in a circle onto the base of the other half of the biscuits. Gently press one of each biscuit together to form a melting moment.
  11. Dust with icing sugar before serving.
Vanilla Buttercream ~
  1. In the bowl of an electric mixer add butter and vanilla paste and mix until smooth. 
  2. Add powdered sugar and beat until mixture forms a paste, the consistency of thick icing. 
  3. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a small star nozzle.
Raspberry Jam ~
  1. Place raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan and cook for 20-30 minutes on medium heat until thickened. 
  2. Mix gelatin powder with one tablespoon cold water together. 
  3. Remove the jam from the heat, stir through gelatin mixture. 
  4. Transfer to a heatproof bowl and cool in the fridge.
Recipe from MasterChef Australia





Here's how you can be part of the Creative Cookie Exchange:

  • Write a blog post with recipe and original photo (please include some language here specific to that month's theme). We would like the recipe to be one you’re making for the first time, and photos must be original.
  • Post the Cookie Exchange badge somewhere on your blog so others can join in the fun ~

Creative Cookie Exchange


You can also just use us as a great resource for cookie recipes - be sure to check out our Facebook page, our Pinterest Board, and our monthly posts. You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! Also, if you are looking for inspiration for this month's theme, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made so far ~

  • Pecan Chocolate Bars by Laura at The Spiced Life
  • Chocolate Chip Skillet Brownies by Rebecka at At Home with Rebecka
  • Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip by Stacy at Food Lust People Love
  • White Chocolate Oat Cookies by Renee at Magnolia Days
  • Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Cookies by Becca at It's Yummilicious
  • Fortune Cookies by Holly at A Baker's House
  • Whole Wheat Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies by Karen at Karen's Kitchen Stories
  • Orange Cookies by Kathya at Basic N Delicious
  • Melting Moments by Felice at All That's Left Are The Crumbs
  • Pumpkin Oatmeal Pecan Cookies by Sophie at If I Ever Owned A Bakery...
  • Peanut Butter No-Bakes by Miranda at Cookie Dough and Oven Mitt
  • Banana Apple (Banapple) Spice Cookies by Kim at Liv Life


  • 15 comments:

    1. Another great idea I enjoyed making the bunt cake, and this looks like a fun thing to join in also. Your melting moments look so good.

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    2. Buttercream AND jam in the middle? What gorgeous cookies those are, Felice! No wonder they are a favorite in Australia.

      I've never watched the actual Masterchef Australia but I did thoroughly enjoy season one of the junior show for children. There were some pretty amazing cooks on there!

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    3. What a great cookie! Looks like a Jam Whoopie Pie Cookie. The jam and buttercream combination looks soooo good!

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    4. You're cookies have my mouth watering! Goodness, they look amazing! I'm so happy you're co-hosting the Creative Cookie Exchange with your luscious Back to School cookie recipe. Lucky kids is all I can say!

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    5. Oh how very pretty! I love cookies with jam and the buttercream really makes these special.

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    6. Oh my GOODNESS, Felice...these cookies look SCRUMPTIOUS! It was great "creating" with you this month!

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    7. These are absolutely adorable! And beautifully photographed! :) They look so luscious and yummy. Definitely gotta make these!

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    8. Drooling over these cookies!! So pretty and filled with my favorite buttercream. There's wouldn't be any crumbs left over when I was done with them. Plate licking good!

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    9. Oh my gosh these are so cute!!!! I love everything about these! Pinned them!

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    10. Again, I love that last shot. It says it all! I discovered melting moments a year or two ago and have never forgotten them. Ours were passion fruit, and I simply couldn't get enough. As a matter of fact, the passion fruits are just hitting the farmer's market, I think I'll have to dig out my recipe. Or, just follow yours here! I think it's the cornstarch that makes them so wonderful? I just love the texture!!! Beautiful, Felice!

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    11. Cookie exchange...what a cute idea! These look stunning and have been on my to bake list for a while.. your pics are making sure i get round to them sooner rather than later.
      MyCupcake Habit

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    12. These look amazing. I also am loving the last shot. Clever!

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    13. Felice, those are just gorgeous. I bet your girls love them--I know mine would. I am bookmarking for when I am feeling ambitious. For some reason sandwich cookies always unnerve me, even though they never turn out to be that tricky. Thank you so much for supporting this project from the get go!

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    14. This recipe looks devine and your photos are stunningly beautiful!!! I have so much enjoyed visiting everyone's blogs and getting lots of ideas for future baking!

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