I was looking through the Cookie House posts the other day and realised that one glaring lack that the Cookie House website has at the moment, is any recipe for cookies! Well, I was going to remedy that, and I will, very soon I plan to show you Mexican Wedding Cookies, which are Mr T’s favourite, I’l Bruto (Ugly but Delicious), chocolate and almond cookies and my own favourite Lemon Myrtle Macaroons, both the standard and the food intolerant versions of as many as I can convert successfully for you.
So anyway, off to the Cookie House I trundled, but instead of making cookies I was in the mood for something utterly moorish and divinely gorgeous, want to see?
These are my Apricot and Almond Blondies. I have made these because all of the friands and sticky date puddings I made last week have mysteriously evaporated (again), and I like to have something in the freezer for snacks and also for the two young Cookie House pups to take for play lunch to work and uni. These are very nutrient dense, full of nutritious ingredients, and while I would never consider something with so much sugar in it healthy, they are healthier than many snack or dessert alternatives.
You can use Vanilla essence in these if you want to, or extract, whichever you use, add a good teaspoon full. I have this glorious ground vanilla from Queensland that I have been itching to try, IT SMELLS SO GOOD! I bought it for my spiced lattes, but they can spare a bit.
Ingredients
270g almond meal
90g desiccated coconut
250g sugar
100g dried apricots, chopped
7 eggs
220g olive oil
1 teaspoon vanilla powder, essence or extract
150g apricot jam (I used my award winning Convalita Farmhouse Foods Intensely Apricotty Jam, made from the apricots in my orchard, you can buy a jar from Karen at Gourmet Goodies in Lyndoch if you want to, or just use your favourite apricot jam)
20g flaked almonds
Preheat your oven to 160 degrees C fan forced, if your oven is not fan forced 170 degrees C.
In a large bowl combine the almond meal, sugar, coconut, dried apricots and vanilla powder, make a well in the centre and tip in the eggs and olive oil, don’t be concerned about being too dainty here, we are about to mix the living daylights out of it.
Give it all a good thump around until it is thoroughly mixed and then pour into a large, lined brownie tray, I use a 24 x 34cm straight sided tray, smooth out, then gently drop teaspoons full of apricot jam randomly over the surface.
This will make gooey wells of deliciousness. Scatter the flaked almonds over the top and then pop it in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden and cooked through.
Allow to cool in the tin before cutting if you can wait that long. If you are impatient (like me), slide it out onto a cutting board very carefully and cut into portions very gently with a bread knife.
I could heat the last of my jam and brush this over the surface as a glaze, if I was doing it to take somewhere I would do that, I am planning to cut this into portions and wrap and freeze individually for work snacks, so all a glaze is going to do is stick to the cling wrap. Don’t bother, it is perfect without it.
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