MAPLE BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE COOKIES – Recipe

THUMBPRINT COOKIES Ingredients:

• 225g (1 Cup) Unsalted Butter, Room Temp
• 63g (1/2 Cup) Pure Icing/Confectioners Sugar
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• Pinch of Salt
• 250g (2 Cups) Plain/All-Purpose Flour

 

METHOD:

1. Beat butter and sugar on high till pale and creamy.
2. Scrape down the bowl, beat in vanilla and salt.
3. Mix in flour on medium-low speed just till combined.
4. Bring dough together into a ball, cover and chill for 30-60 minutes until it is firm.
5. Roll tablespoons of dough into a ball.
6. Place on baking paper-lined large baking tray and press down each ball with a your thumb to make an indent at the centre. Use index finger and thumb to start shaping the sides neatly whilst also pressing the indent down to make a neat cookie with an indent about 1cm in height. This should fix any cracks too.
7. The idea is to make it deep but not too wide.
8. Fill with cheesecake filling just a little under the brim to leave room for the macerated berries.
9. Bake for 20 minutes at 160C (325F) or until golden and puffy on middle rack of oven.
10. Cool for 5 minutes before transferring onto cooling rack.
11. Cookies can be stored airtight at room temperature for couple of days. Otherwise store in fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.

 

MACERATED BLUEBERRIES Ingredients:

• 125g (1 Punnet) Fresh Blueberries
• 113g (1/2 Cup) Caster Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon Lemon Zest
• 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 3 Tablespoons Maple Syrup

METHOD:

1. Combine all ingredients except maple syrup in a bowl or airtight container.
2. Let stand for 15 minutes before giving it another stir to mix evenly.
3. The sugar should mostly be dissolved and drawn out the berries liquid after an hour or so.
4. Stir in the maple syrup.
5. Macerate for at least a day or overnight. Two days should be fine for a thick-skinned berry like this, but keep an eye on the condition. Do not go for too many days as the berry can also break down too much.
6. You can store in the fridge after the first day.
7. Strain out the berries to bake into cheesecake filling or serve on top of baked cookies.
8. Keep chilled in airtight container until serving. Good at room temperature or cold.

 

CHEESECAKE FILLING Ingredients

• 115g (4 Oz) Cream Cheese, Room Temp
• 84g (Heaped 1/3 Cup) Caster Sugar
• 1 Large Egg Yolk
• 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• Pinch of Salt

METHOD:

1. Beat cream cheese till smooth and lump free, scraping down base and sides of bowl halfway.
2. Beat together with rest of the ingredients till smooth & creamy.