When I was younger, I used to think these were the cutest cookies that ever existed and nothing has changed.
SERVES 8
Ingredients
200ml Alkermes, peach schnapps
or Campari sweetened with peach nectar
Cookies
125g (½ cup) vegan butter, softened
100g caster sugar
40g soy milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½–1 teaspoon almond extract
150g (1 cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
8g 1½ teaspoons) baking powder
pinch of salt
Filling
255g soy milk
50g caster sugar, plus extra for coating
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of ½ lemon
50g custard powder
Method
Preheat the oven to 170˚C. Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl with a wooden spoon until light and fluffy. Add the soy milk, vanilla and almond extracts, then combine.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt over the butter mixture and mix to combine. The dough should be a tiny bit sticky.
If needed, add a little extra flour. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour to firm up. While the dough is chilling, make the filling.
Pour 175g soy milk into a small saucepan, then add the sugar, vanilla extract and lemon zest. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down to low and simmer. In a small bowl, combine the custard powder with the remaining 80g soy milk and mix to make a smooth paste, then whisk this mixture into the hot milk. Continue to cook over a low heat until thickened. Pour the mixture into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap so that it doesn’t form a skin, then refrigerate till cold.
Roll the mixture into sixteen equal-sized balls, then place on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake for 8–10 minutes, or until the bottoms of the cookies are lightly golden. While still warm, scoop out a small whole in the bottom of each cookie to allow for the filling. Place the cooled filling in a piping (pastry) bag then snip the corner and fill the holes in the cookies with the filling. Press two together slightly.
Dip the outside in Alkermes, or the liqueur of your choice, then roll in caster sugar. Place, flat side down, on a cooling rack to allow the liqueur to absorb. Garnish with a leaf.
Recipes from Vegan Italian Food: Over 100 Recipes for a Plant-based Feast by Shannon Martinez
Published by Hardie Grant Books. Available in stores nationally.
