Coffee, Walnut and Cinnamon Creams

With the first day of December tomorrow, I've been feeling a little festive. Not so much that I might get carried away and go shopping; just enough to make some spicy, indulgent little cookies for tomorrow's work meeting.
This recipe is based on a coffee biscuit my mother often makes. I've just added some Christmas spice in the form of a little cinnamon. Nothing like a little treat to sweeten up a Monday morning.

Coffee, Walnut and Cinnamon Creams

140g butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 egg
3 tablespoons very strong espresso
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
about 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 extra beaten egg for glazing

Cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the egg, at room temperature, and beat until well combined. 

Next add the coffee and vanilla essence. 

Fold in the sifted flour, cinnamon and baking powder. 

Wrap the mixture in plastic baking film and chill for about 20 minutes. 

Once chilled, preheat the oven to 180deg. C.

Take from the fridge and place between two sheets of plastic wrap. 

Roll out until the mixture is about half a centimetre thick. 

Remove the top layer of plastic wrap, then using a cookie cutter, stamp out a row of biscuits. 

Transfer them to a lined tray by removing the surrounding mixture, then lifting the bottom layer of plastic and peeling off the biscuit shapes before placing them onto the waiting tray. 

Gather up all the scraps and re-roll and repeat the biscuit cutting until all the mixture is used. 

Using a pastry brush, glaze the top of the uncooked biscuits with the extra beaten egg.














Sprinkle on the chopped walnuts and bake for 10 minutes. 











While the biscuits are baking prepare the filling: 

Beat together 120g butter, 1 cup icing sugar, 3 tablespoons very strong espresso, and 1 teaspoon vanilla essence until light and fluffy. 

Set aside until the biscuits are completely cooled. 

Place a teaspoon of filling onto half the biscuits and sandwich them together into pairs. 

The recipe makes about 24 depending on the size of the cutter. 

Time to start humming those Christmas Carols....