Filled Cookies with Nuts and Marzipan

Middle of last week I got my new oven and it is a convection oven.
I started baking the day itself. Each time I went to the kitchen I coudn't stop smiling , this oven is much bigger than the old one.
Next day when i went to my in laws place I told my MIL how can one just feel so good because having a new oven.
Ofcourse i do have to get used to the new oven as i found out when i baked bread this weekend they were baked in less time than my old oven.

Really the last days I have been walking aroung here at home with a huge smile , even now while writting the post I am smilling just because I have a new oven :-)

Ofcourse my daughter and hubby can't understand the joy I am feeling with my new oven. They both think I am weird for beeing so happy for something like a oven.

It is exams for my daughter so I love baking while she is learning in her room and she is my taster, the moment they come out from the oven and can be handled I take one to her for tasting.

I must say these cookies are really delicious. They are buttery and you bite into them and inside you have this filling of nuts , marzipan and redcurrant jelly all mixed together.

My New Oven

For the dough
100 gm ice very cold unsalted butter
200 gm flour
75 gm sugar
1 medium egg

a pinch of salt

Cut the cold butter into small pieces. Add them to the flour, sugar, egg and the salt in a bowl.
Mix it with the hand till it forms a ball. Don't over work it, if you do then the dough get tough.
Wrap the dough in a foil and keep in the fridge for 1 hour.

For the filling:

100 gm Walnuts chopped fine
50 gm marzipan. ( grate them fine)
50 gm red currant jam. ( you don't have to stick to this jam, i am sure you can add any taste)
18 half walnuts.

For the drizzle
50 gm dark chocolate
1 tbsp butter

Melt the chocolate together with the butter for the drizzle.

Mix in a bowl the walnuts, marzipan and the jam.
Divide the dought into 18 balls. Take a ball and shape them into a round shape ( i presses with my palm) Take a tbsp or less filling and keep them in the middle of the circle shape and then take each end and press and make a ball.
Repeat with the other balls.
Press a walnut half in the middle of each balls.
Preheat the oven to 180°C and bake them for 18 minutes.
Cool them and drizzle the chocolate and leave the chocolate to get hard.
Enjoy the cookies.I am sending this to Susan for her if you check out her place you will see what all cookies santa as got till now just go here and also do make some cookies and send her way.

Pistachio and Lemon Curd Macarons

Some three weeks ago I mentioned to my hubby and daughter, we are doing again Mac atack

Daughter : yuppieeeeee Macarons, what colour are you going to make and what filling?

Hubby : ohhhhhh Noooooooooooo You are not going to make them again and moan from the kitchen it didn't come out nice and start over and over again and make us eat all those horribly gone wrong Macarons.

Last time I had to do few times till i got them good
So while few of the Mac team was in London for FBC , and to compensate me not beeing there I thought I will make them.

It was so quiet in the kitchen .........that hubby came to look what is going on and when he saw the Macarons resting before going to the oven, he looked one look to the green colour of row of macarons and said oh NO you are not making those alien looking things are you.
That is what he calls them now, as I use such colours :-)

This time I used half almond powder and half pistchio nuts.
I didn't get a real smooth finishing to my macarons, but I didn't want to make them again so I thought this will have to do.
They were really delicious with the lemon curd filling. I used shop bought lemon curd.

You can find the recipe from my earlier post here instead of using full almonds i used half pistachios.
So this is for my Mac tweet