Jam filled shortbread cookies have been a longtime favorite on Scottish and English tea tables. Now popular in Canada! Store in a covered tin.
Exactly the kind of cookie I had in mind! These turned out looking great and tasting rich and buttery. Tip for the previous reviewer who found them messy to roll out: I rolled about half of the dough between 2 large sheets of wax paper. (Put the rest of the dough in the fridge until you're ready for it.) The wax paper keeps the dough from sticking to your rolling pin and work surface - you don't even need to use any flour. Peel off the top sheet and do your cut-outs. The cookies will also be easy to lift off from the bottom sheet. Also, you can keep re-rolling the scraps of dough without having to worry that you've added too much flour to the recipe.
Read MoreI was not a fan of these cookies. I think the recipe was easy to follow and i thought they were going to taste great but it had a funny taste to it. Not sure what I would do to change it next time.
Read MoreExactly the kind of cookie I had in mind! These turned out looking great and tasting rich and buttery. Tip for the previous reviewer who found them messy to roll out: I rolled about half of the dough between 2 large sheets of wax paper. (Put the rest of the dough in the fridge until you're ready for it.) The wax paper keeps the dough from sticking to your rolling pin and work surface - you don't even need to use any flour. Peel off the top sheet and do your cut-outs. The cookies will also be easy to lift off from the bottom sheet. Also, you can keep re-rolling the scraps of dough without having to worry that you've added too much flour to the recipe.
My dough was very dry and crumbly and hard to work with, then after the initial taste test I thought that these were very dry and not that good at all. But after letting them sit in a covered container overnight, the rasberry jam (I used seedless) moistened those cookies and they ended up being really good. i don't know how to make the dough easier to work with if I should try adding another egg or some milk perhaps?
These are exactly the Empire Cookie I was looking for. My changes include enhancing the flavouring a bit. I used pure vanilla extract I also bumped up the almond a bit. I used a very small round cookie cutter to make a very delicate sized cookie. I only put one very tiny piece of marschino cherry in the centre. Tht is how I remember them from the bakery. I added a few tablespoons of wheat germ to add texture to the dough. I put the jam on the one half of the cookie, then left that jam covered half open on racks for awhile so the jam could "dry out a bit" then I closed it up with the top cookie.and iced it. Yes, a bit of work, but worth it.
This are easy and look so fancy with the sandwich effect and the icing drizzled on top. I've made these several times. Very popular with family and friends and perfect for kids to help with. Thanks for the great recipe Marguerite!
I followed the recipe exactly & they turned out great. I made them on Friday (today is Tuesday) & they are still wonderful! Be sure to store them in a covered contatiner as other reviewer's have suggested.
I formed two balls of dough and flattened them into a disk shape, put one in the fridge and tried to roll the other but like another reviewer, my dough seemed too crumbly to roll out. I took the suggestion of yet another reviewer and rolled out the dough between two sheets of wax paper and it worked like a charm. I put the cookies on a parchment lined cookie tray and chilled them in the fridge for 10 mins before baking them. My cookies only took 8 mins to bake and for the edges to turn a very light golden colour. Next time I think I might add a little more vanilla to enhance the flavor of the cookies. That said, these cookies were a big hit with our family. Thanks for sharing!
I double the recipe, and used a piece of towel dried maraschino cherry for the top did not want to buy or spend money on candy cherries. The cookies were awesome, not too sweet even with the sugar glaze, my favorite cookie to eat so far. If your not a big chocolate fan try these so yummy.
I was not a fan of these cookies. I think the recipe was easy to follow and i thought they were going to taste great but it had a funny taste to it. Not sure what I would do to change it next time.
A good shortbread cookie. Not too dry at all. Dough was easy to work with (rolled out nice, didn't crumble, cut out well). Finished cookie looked and tasted wonderful. Instead of candied cherries on top I used rasberries dusted with sugar. Awesome recipe!
Fantastico! Or, I guess in the heritage of the cookie, I enjoyed these a 'wee' too much. Please note, if you freeze the cookies, the frosting separates and they need to be re-coated. Time consuming, but very tasty. I will never buy these again. Thank you!
Easy to make. Great to eat. Kids love them
I have to admit that these cookies taste good just by itself, but i had sooo much trouble rolling them out. I rolled the dough between two pieces of parchment paper but it'll still crumble up. I followed the direction to the dot. I love these cookies and they are expensive at the coffee stores, so i want to try them again.
These are a-maz-ing. So yum. I didn't have any candied cherries so I left that out. That was the only change I made. Very, very good.
I made this recipe to the letter. The only change I made was on the décor. They taste amazing and I'm sure they'll be a huge hit at tomorrows family gathering for Easter. As other reviers have suggested, roll out the dough between sheets of wax paper. (not parchment) I put the dough in the fridge, as one reviewer suggested, before rolling and found it made the dough crumble even more. After letting it return to room temperature, the dough rolled out perfectly. All my batches of cookies were done at 8 minutes at 350°F. This recipe yielded 15 complete cookies at 1½" across and ?" thickness. (30 single cookies) Which is perfect as it means I get to eat 3! I will certainly make these again.
I used to make these at Xmas because not only did they taste wonderful but also looked so attractive. I have never used a full tsp. of baking powder (half I found is ample) because it affects the shortbread texture.
These cookies are a treasured, highly sought-after item here in Winnipeg; though we call them Imperial cookies for some reason. Tired of paying high prices to satisfy my cravings, I found this recipe--and it is stellar!! Tastes exactly like what I would find in a high-end coffee shop! I will be sure to make a double batch next time to freeze leftovers. Also, next time I will put more jam inside the cookies, as they slurped up the excess liquid like a sponge. These treats always taste better after sitting overnight, which softens the cookie, and gives it a better texture, at least to me. Thank you!!
The cookies were fantastic!! did heart shaped which made cooking time a bit longer (like extra 3 minutes) used raspberry jelly with seeds tasted great. However, and maybe I'm not too great a chef, but I tried the icing four seperate times and it just instantly hardened too thick to spread and had to throw out. I don't know what I did wrong. Will make again but use diff glaze. also, hard to roll out cookie dough, but used wax paper and rolled, reballed, rolled again, etc.. the third through 8 times rolling out were much easier than first, which was crumbly. :) so cookies are a 5 star without a doubt, just took one star off for the icing. thanks!
I remember these cookies as a kid. They are rather $$$ in the stores. They turned out quite nicely in appearance and taste. I had a problem with the dough crumbling. I wished that I had read the reviews ahead of time as there were some tips with the dough which I'll take into consideration in the future as I always have problems with dough. Because of this I only produced about a dozen.
There is only one problem with this recipe - the store in a covered tin instruction - this is definitely an oven to mouth cookie. I tried to persuade my kids that they would taste even better cold and got accused of trying to eat them all myself. As a son of a scottish mother it was marvellous to find that Empire biscuits taste better than I remember. Try hundreds and thousands on the icing instead for alternative decoration.
This is the BEST cookie I have ever made. Someone always wants the recipe once they have tried them. I tell them "All Recipes" Thank you for sharing!
these are my favourite cookies of all time. this recipe doesn't exactly match the ones i remember getting from the mom & pop bakery in my hometown but they're pretty close. i think the brand of jam would make all the difference. the reason i gave them 4 out of 5 is that the dough was too dry to roll out and kept cracking so i had to add an extra egg (i doubled the recipe so a whole egg would probably be too much extra moisture for a single batch). otherwise, very tasty and satisfying!
A lot of work but worth it. Never tried these cookies before thought they would be too sweet but they weren't . Scottish neighbor and chiropractor loved them!
I remember my mother bringing these cookies home from the bakery. I used to call them ice skating cookies because of the white icing and the red cherry that looked like a scarf. I know, big imagination! These cookies were - and I say were because they are all gone - really good. The dough was super easy to work with. It didn't crack or stick and I was able to reroll scraps to get as many cookies as possible. They hardly spread while baking so I was able to bake quite a few on one cookie sheet. These are very expensive to buy. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I'll be making them again soon.
I loved these, and remember my mom making them when I was younger, she was from Scotland. I did add a bit more almond to the icing, but what I am thinking is next time I might use the store bought sugar cookie dough( I know) but it would be fine Im sure, I will try it and update.
These cookies were a hit with my bridge girls-rolling between waxed paper was a great help- no mess and no extra flour added
These are great as is with the exception of adding more almond flavouring to the icing and needing more water to make the icing spreadable as well.
I was in a hurry and did not have enough flour so I used cake flour. The dough was sticky and I had to use flour. They turned out very well but making them took longer. I would suggest that you do not substitute regular flour.
These cookies melt in your mouth! I use a champagne flute as my cookie cutter. At Christmas I make these with wine jelly, makes this classic a little jazzier.
Our Scottish Mums loved these! I made them today for my hubby as he was telling me how much his Mum loved them and he remembered having them from the bakery as a child. I also have a memory of having had these cookies as a child. I read on the reviews that lots had a problem with a crumbly dough that was difficult to deal with. As I was making my batch I though about this and this is my conclusion. When you are creaming the butter, cream it very well in the bowl and then add the sugar and cream them together very well until they are soft. Then add your egg and vanilla and again, cream very well. When you add your flour and baking powder mixture, add it in small amounts and blend well after each addition and at the end the dough will be very well combined. Definitely lay one half of your dough on a large waxed paper sheet after making a disc of it and patting it flatter. Lay another waxed paper sheet over it and then roll it out. You will have no trouble at all doing it this way. I used a shot glass to cut out the cookies as it was exactly 2 inches in diameter. Any larger would be too much. The raspberry preserves I used was a bit of a specialty item made from frozen raspberries grown in British Columbia. I used parchment paper for baking them. Use enough hot water in the glaze to be able to pour it off a spoon and not pour off the cookie. I used about two tablespoons of hot water. These cookies are perfect!!! I didn't change a thing with this recipe!!!
Made these tonight. Thought they were great, love the icing. Added a touch more vanilla to the dough. Since so many has trouble rolling out the dough, I just dropped it onto some plastic wrap, formed a log and put it in the fridge for a couple of minutes. Sliced it into disks, no rolling required.
These were great as a young new baker I like cookies like these they were easy to roll and easy to clean up afterwards I couldn't stop my family from eating these and the icing was great. Although I didn't have almond extract I used vanilla instead it was great. I AM SO MAKING THESE AGAIN!!! I hope other kid bakers have great times with these.
One of the best cookie recipes I've ever made! Super easy as I normally make the dough in the morning and keep it wrapped up in the fridge until the afternoon. I find rolling it out between wax paper to be the easiest way to avoid a major kitchen mess. Since I don't have an actual round cookie cutter, I use a shot glass instead which is the perfect size. I noramlly like the raspberry jam in the middle but sometimes switch it up with my homemade strawberry. Super yummy and everyone loves them!
AWESOME recipe. Rave reviews from co-workers. Tasted just like the ones I grew up eating in Canada. Only suggested change is to watch them carefully while baking. Undersides were a little overdone even though tops were fine when using the suggested baking time. Also, I found it hard to find Rasp. Jam and tried with preserves. Definitely search a little more for the jam..the preserves didn't hold the cookies together as well.
My husband used to make these cookies with his Scottish Grampa, and he said this recipe is exactly like he remembers them to be. They are perfect.
This is a great empire cookies recipe. They were easy to make (only took about an hour from start to finish - I thought it would take much longer!). The taste was absolutely delicious, the frosting almost tasted like a marzipan because of the yummy addition of the almond extract. And the cookies were soft and melt-in-your-mouth good. And the dough rolled out really easily. I had no glacee cherries so I topped mine with a slivered almond and they looked great. These only lasted a day in my house!
My boyfriend is from England and his family and him all say these cookies really remind him of home! They are so good!
Lovely recipe and exactly what I was looking for. No changes needed. I made them quite tiny; they were perfect little mouthsful, and therefore not very filling. They looked so pretty as well among a tray of sweets. Thanks for this recipe.
I've always loved these cookies but had never made them before - much easier than they look. I used a bit more jam and almond extract than called for and made the cookies smaller. This is definately a cookie that impresses people; they are so pretty. One other tip: use seedless jam.
I just made the cookies smaller and used vanilla extract for the icing. Tries a single batch and now they are on my Christmas Cookie Gift list.
These were great! I will put them into my rotation! Stayed good in my cookie jar! I used the wax paper one of the reviewers recommended, worked great, no wasted dough!
WoW!!!!! Simple to make! Esthetically pleasing!! Very delicious!!! Green and red candied cherries during Christmas for the theme. p.s. I know everyone is saying to use seedless jam, I only had jam with seeds on hand and found it turned out great.
I'll have to try the wax paper as dough is quite crumbly. Easier to roll if u put flour on top. Delicious
I've just recently fallen in love with baking, and have so much to learn. My mother's favourite cookie is the Empire cookie, although I'm not a fan of them myself. Unfortunately, I can never find them at the bakery. With mother's day coming up, I decided to try to make them myself. I was very nervous as I've only baked a few things to date. Totally unfounded! They came out fantastic on the first try. I couldn't believe that I made these cookies. I used a cookie cutter (first time) in the shape of a heart. As I said, I'm not fond of them so I asked my sister to give them a trial run before giving them to my mother. My sister oohed and ahhhed. I am now a BIG fan of empire cookies. My mother was shocked to see her fav cookies, and that I made them. She so went on about them to my Aunt, that I then had to make a second batch for her! .I don't have anything other than my kitchen table (wooden) to roll the dough on. The dough is so sticky and no matter how much flour I dusted the table with, that dough would stick to it and the rolling pin. I kept brushing flour on the rolling pin. Then, after I cut out the shapes, I'd try and lift them up with a spatula and they'd stick! So my poor little cookies mostly came out looking like mutated hearts. Secondly, I set the timer for 10 mins and they came out beautifully, but the second batch, also set for 10 mins came out a little too brown on the bottom.
Very nice. Easy to roll out and cut. Just what I was looking for after having one from the local bakery. Will include in my Christmas cookies for sure! Thanks for a great, simple recipe. PS - also used this recipe for my Stained Glass cookies and it was perfect as it's so easy to work with the dough
The first time I made these cookies, they took me over 3 hours to assemble, but they were well worth the effort! And the next time I made them, I got a good system going and it took far less time. Everyone enjoyed them and they look very festive. A great holiday cookie.
I tried this cookie for Christmas and loved it. I used red decorating sugar instead of the cherries and it ¨melted¨ into the icing and looked really pretty. I will make these again, and not just at Christmas. Yum!
If you love this recipe as much as I do try out this adaptation for Christmas. I like to make these delicious cookies into jam sandwich biscuits (similar to a linzer cookie with cutout shape tops). I then carefully paint a lemon glaze across the tops (Betty Crocker has a simple and easy recipe) As others have suggested the dough is pretty sticky. Chill the dough! Often I'll stick the dough back in the fridge in between rolling it out the second and third time. Make sure you roll it out in between layers of parchment. Sticking your cookie cutter in flour also helps to reduce the sticking. Lastly peel the parchment from the cookie, not the cookie from the parchment. The original recipe is also killer! My family loves them!
These are my new favourite cookie in the entire cookie world! Let the cookies set for an hour after you assemble them to allow the jam to set and they'll be even more perfect (if you can wait that long)!
These are really easy to make filled cookies. I used raspberry jam for some of the filling and orange marmalde for the rest. I also added orange flavoring to the icing. These freeze very well.
I made these a couple days in advance for a party we were having over the holidays. These cookies did not see that party, as everyone ATE THEM as soon as they were done. Fantastic recipe, although I wish there were some way to drizzle the icing so it doesnt drip off the cookies so much.
This recipe was disappointing. The batter came out extremely clumpy and would not stick together - I needed to add a significant amount of water to this recipe. The yield was also far more than 12 cookies, as I ended up with about 30, which is far too much for my family. The icing could have used half the amount of icing sugar and would have been just fine. While the cookies do taste good, they were by no means worth the hassle and mess of making. Overall, this was a complete waste of time and ingredients.
Just as I remember them from when I worked in a Scottich Tea room. They were so easy to make!! They dough was very crumbly but rolled out easily when I used a piece of plastic wrap b/t the dough and rolling pin. Everyone loved them and I will definitly make them every year for Christmas.
I have made these cookies for a couple of years. ( just have never reviewed them till now) These are easy to make, and always draw attention on a cookie platter.
Made these for a cookie exchange. They are very pretty and taste pretty good.
they turned out perfect, we were out of butter so I used margarine but other the that they were awesome!
Was alright. Dough was dry and crumbly had to add some water to moisten the dough.
The first time I made this recipe I found the dough so hard to work with...and only got 12 cookies as I couldn't work with the rest of dough. They sat overnight in a sealed container and tasted good though. So I came back and read the comments and tried the recipe again. This time I sifted 1 3/4 cup flour with 1/4 cup cornstarch. I only placed in fridge for 1/2 hour and rolled the dough between parchment paper. They turned out beautiful and I got 27 cookies altogether. After sitting in sealed container for a couple of hours they just melted in your mouth....everyone is my house can't stop eating them...
These were excellent! I made them for my entire family for xmas, and they were GONE so fast. A little time consuming to make, and the icing was tricky; I had to keep drizzling it on because it had a tendency to run off, but they were absolutely worth it. They reminded me of a recipe my grandmother used to make years ago. Thanks for the great recipe!
My all-time favourite cookie. They cost $4.00 for 6 in the local bakery in my town, so I only buy them once in a while as a special treat. My son loves these too. Added more Mexican vanilla to the cookie dough and more almond to the icing, and left off the cherries (nobody likes them in my house!). My tip is, make sure that you beat your butter, sugar and eggs thoroughly, they will be fluffy looking, then slowly add the flour, making sure it is well incorporated before adding more, you will have a dough that will roll out nicely between sheets of waxed paper, with no issues with the dough crumbling. We will be making these often, they are SOOOOO good! By the way, I made a double batch, I always do when making cookies as it's just as easy, one for eating and one to freeze for later. Next time I will try with seedless raspberry jam.
I didn’t make any changes to the recipe I found it a little hard to work with the dough because it was super crumbly! The cookies turned out good though! I will try it again with the suggestions from the other viewers to put it between two sheets of waxed paper and roll it out that way!
The cookies were good but the icing was not very good at all. The almond flavour was over powering and the icing was too sweet. If I were to make again I would skip the icing as the cookies were good by themselves
I chose these cookies for a church cookie swap. They turned out very beautiful and fancy displayed on a three tiered crystal serving dish. However, they were time consuming for me to make with a 3 year old under foot but not impossible. I gave this recipe 4 stars because I thought the cookie itself was somewhat bland, but others raved!! My 9 year old was smitten with them. I used 1/3 of a cherry for the "berry" and piped the leaf on with green icing. These cookies were definately a SHOW STOPPER!!!
It worked good tasted great but next time I’ll roll out the dough and uses a small glass to cut them out
I've made this recipe multiple times always with excellent results! My sister has as well, but used marijuana butter in the recipe. They turned out just as well, but only eat 1/2 a cookie??
Made these using a tiny scalloped canape cutter and filled them with Nutella instead of jam. It made perfect bitesize cookies that looked extremely dainty and pretty on the cookie trays. Not only did they look wonderful, they are melt in your mouth good!
I made these as written. When I rolled them between 2 pieces of waxed paper as one member suggested, the cookies stuck to the paper and I couldn’t pull them off with out damaging them. So I put the dough in the fridge and it hardened a little too much. But I just let them sit for a bit at room temperature then started rolling them on a floured countertop. The dough eventually softened up enough and I was able to roll and cut them to shape no problem. With a little patience it all came together! Thank you for the recipe. They are pretty and delicious!
Best recipe ever. Had to use strawberry jam instead of raspberry, but reckon that was not a minus.
Always a hit with the family especially for Christmas. Requires some carefull work especially with my large fingers but well worth the effort.
I love this recipe. I thought it went really well with the cherry. I had no strawberry or rasberry jam so I used lemon jam and it tasted wonderful. Its the best cookies i've ever made.
This recipe is the absolute worst! They are flavorless mounds of flour, what a waste. I recommend you dont even bother with this recipe. First the dough was too crumbly to work with and then I taste them and they are absolute garbage.
My Scottish grandmother would not approve!
Excellent cookie to add to any cookie exchange. They are beautiful for presentation and melt in your mouth too. My mother in-law makes a more traditional recipe, but these are a stiff competion to 50 yr old recipe
Made these cookies today and everyone loved them! I didn't stray from the recipe and they turned out great. I added a little color to the icing for Easter.
