Strawberry pinwheel cookies

Blogging has definitely renewed my interest in baking and cooking. Before starting this blog, I used to cook out of necessity, doing just enough to go by. Nowadays, I cook or bake something everyday. JM is now so used to sampling new treats, he assumes that I would make something interesting everyday. But for the past few days, I was not in a mood to do anything, so my kitchen was taking a breather. Eventhough JM didnt say anything specific, he hinted about missing the treats! Yesterday, I decided to make these cookies because they look very attractive. Once I started assembling the cookies I doubted my decision because it was taking longer than I expected, but somehow finished the entire dough. When JM came in from work and suddenly saw these yummy cookies on the counter waiting for him and his face lit up. Its for these moments that I bake, that smile made it worth the time I spent shaping them !! :-) We were taking pictures of the cookies and suddenly I remembered that I had forgotten to brush the cookies with butter before baking. Ooops!! But nevertheless, they were really tasty and could be considered a bit healthier, couldnt they?! It takes a bit of time to shape the cookies, but make for a good presentation! Happy baking everybody!

Recipe (Makes 32 cookies):

All-purpose flour - 1 2/3 cups

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Salt - 1/8 tsp

Butter - 1/3 cup, softened

Cream cheese - 1/3 cup, softened

Granulated sugar - 1/2 cup

Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp

Egg - 1, large

Apricot or peach preserves - 3-4 tbsp

Butter - 1-2 tbsp, melted

Pistachios - 2 tbsp, finely chopped

Method:

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together into a medium bowl.

In a large bowl, neat the butter, cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer at high speed until creamy.

Add the vanilla and egg to the butter mixture and beat until just blended.

Mix in the dry ingredients to form a smooth dough.

Divide the dough in half.

Press each half into dics and wrap in plastic wrap.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Set two cookie sheets aside.

Roll out each disc into a 10" square on a lightly floured surface.

Cut each of these squares into 2 1/2" squares.

Drop 1/2 tsp of preserve into the centre of each smaller square.

Cut 1" diagonal slits from each corner of the smaller square.

Fold alternate corners from the slits to the centre to make a pinwheel (windmill) shape.

Sprinkle the preserves and the centre with chopped pistachios, pressing down to seal.

Gently transfer the cookies to the baking sheet using a spatula, placing them about 1 1/2" apart.

Brush with melted butter.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown and the edges are firm.

Rotate the baking sheets halfway through for even baking.

Cool on the cookies sheets until firm enough to be transferred to cooling racks.

Cool completely.

Source: Cookies 1001 mouthwatering recipes from around the world, Reader's digest.

Tips:

1. I used strawberry preserves and omitted pistachios.
2. I forgot to brush the cookies with melted butter, but they turned out fine.
3. The cookies will keep for 4 days.