Thursday, June 5, 2014

Date Cookies

Yum
For this month's "Fill the Cookie Jar", the theme is Dad's Favorites. I really didn't know this one either, because for my mom and dad both, I would have said that their favorite cookie was "homemade"! So, I had to check with my dad. I decided to attempt number three on his list, since it was not on the blog already, and I was a little intrigued by it. Dad had great memories of a Date Cookie that his grandma used to make. That's what you call an old family recipe, and I had no idea how to find. My grandma, has a lot of her recipes in the local church cookbooks, so I scoured through those, no luck. I sent my cousin a message, she seems to be able to locate most of Grandma's recipes when requested. 

I went with the second of the recipes that my cousin sent, I thought it sounded more like the cookie my dad described. I really didn't know what I would think of a "Date Cookie". Surprisingly, it is pretty tasty. Truckin' Man even liked them, and grabbed several off the cooling rack.

It is more of a "cake" cookie than my normal cookie, and definitely more of a time consuming (putzy) cookie to make, but in the end, I think they were worth the time. I think this is a great cookie to go along with a cup of coffee.  Hope you enjoy, and I hope my dad enjoys when he gets to sit down with his cookies!


If you are interested in joining Fill The Cookie Jar group on facebook, fill out the form that can be found at Fill The Cookie Jar. Each month we bake a different theme for the cookie.
We bake, we share and we enjoy our cookies!




Date Cookies

Filling:
1 1/2 cup chopped dates
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 t. lemon extract (or 1 T. lemon juice)

Add dates, sugar, water and pecans to medium saucepan.  Cook over medium heat until thickened. Cool. Add lemon juice. Set aside.

Batter:
2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening (Crisco)
3 eggs, beaten
1 t. vanilla
1 t. baking soda
1 T. hot water
3 1/2  cup flour
1 t. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper, set aside.

In large bowl, cream together brown sugar, butter and shortening until smooth and creamy. Add eggs and vanilla. In measuring cup, mix together soda and water, then add to sugar mixture. Add flour and salt, mix well.

Drop dough by teaspoonful on prepared baking sheets. Make slight indentation in center. Put 1/2 tsp. date filling in center. Spread about 1/2 tsp. dough over filling (enough to cover the filling). Bake for 13-16 minutes or until light golden brown.  Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack.

Enjoy :)

Sharing this at:
Weekend Potluck
 

12 comments:

  1. Mmmm....I like dates so I may have to give these a try sometime. Lucky you to be able to ask your dad what his favorite cookies are. My dad loved sweets of all kinds but since he's gone now I couldn't find out what his favorites were so I went with something I figured he'd love anyway.

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  2. Yum, I love cookies with date fillings. These look delicious!

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  3. Kris, it's so fun that you asked your dad what cookies he would like! I'm curious- what were the other 2 kinds he mentioned? I really like dates. My grandmother used to make date candy- I need to ask my mom if she has that recipe. We let so many great old recipes get lost or forgotten. Thanks for a wonderful family treasure recipe!

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  4. This is a sweet post. My dad loves dates too. :-)
    I am going to make these for him for Father's Day. Thank you!

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  5. These sound wonderful. I love anything with dates!

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  6. I love dates so I may have to try these.
    Don't you just love the old cook books? I do, they are full of great recipes with "real" ingredients.
    Dawn
    Spatulas On Parade

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  7. I love dates and used to make a date filled cookie, too. I also love date and nut pinwheels. Your cookies sound wonderful.

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  8. Yummy!!!!! My littlest loves dates so I must give these a try!

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  9. These cookies look great. I love a soft and fluffy cookie, so these would be right up my alley! Thanks so much for being a part of the Fill The Cookie Jar group!

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  10. these would definitely qualify as cakey cookies, and i love the little surprise inside! dates are wonderful in baked goods!

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  11. Oh my gosh, I can't wait to try this new recipe for Date cookies. Your picture of them is making my mouth water. Thank you for sharing with the Clever Chicks Blog Hop! I hope you’ll join us again next week!

    Cheers,
    Kathy Shea Mormino
    The Chicken Chick
    http://www.The-Chicken-Chick.com

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  12. Hi Kris, Thanks for sharing this delicious Date Cookie recipe on Foodie Friends Friday party this week. I'm definitely going to make this cookie - we love cookies in our family. I've pinned and shared.

    We look forward to seeing you again next week with another delicious recipe,

    Joanne/WineLady Cooks

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