The Friday List and jam creams

Happy Friday! For those in or around Orange, hope to see you at the farmers markets tomorrow morning, but otherwise, here are a few links for cooking and reading over the weekend and a little recipe to fill the biscuit jar.

1. Yet another stunning post from Griottes …be my valentine
2. A lovely recipe for sweat tea with ginger peaches and bourbon via a new discovery, Dinner was Delicious 
3. Getting in the Valentine’s spirit via this collection of links from Creature Comforts. Still on Valentine’s Day, this smash cake looks pretty cute.
4. Great idea for a filling afternoon tea
5. Dark chocolate, ginger and almond biscuits from What’s for Lunch Honey
6. Can’t wait to make this blood orange coconut loaf (but will have to wait a while for blood oranges to come back in season…)
7. Sprouted sourdough bread...looks beautiful but a serious commitment
8. Another fantastic post from Whole Larder Love, I wish we ate like this while out walking
9. Spiced pear and gorgonzola tart from Local Milk
10. Tincture anyone? How to dry, drink and heal with herbs via Design Sponge
11. Armchair travel time…and off we go to Alaska thanks to Cannelle et Vanille
12. A beautiful, beautiful plum crumble cake from Decor8.

Jam Cream (Monte Carlo) biscuits

This recipe is heavily influenced by one given in the gorgeous Australian book ‘Coming Home‘ by Cathy Armstrong. I have tweaked it a little and find they are always a hit. Please excuse the imperfect look of this batch, they were made in a bit of a hurry, as everything seems to be these days! I promise they taste good. Makes about 24 filled biscuits.

180g unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup self raising flour
1 1/4 cups plain flour
1/2 cup desiccated coconut

60g unsalted butter
2 tbsp honey
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/2 vanilla extract
Jam

Preheat the oven to 180C and line two biscuit trays with baking paper. Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Add the egg, honey and vanilla and beat again for another minute. Sift dry ingredients together and then fold through the creamed butter mixture.

Roll into small balls, about a teaspoon-full each and place at 3cm intervals on the prepared trays. Press down on each with a fork and then bake for 10-12 minutes or until the biscuits are pale golden.

Remove and allow to cool completely on a wire rack

For the filling, cream all ingredients together, except for jam. Once biscuits are cool, spread with the butter filling then top with a little jam (I used cherry and vanilla).