Professionally trained pastry chef and cookbook author Lauren Chattman knows a thing or two about cookies.
In her recently re-released book (just in time for the holidays) Cookie Swap (Workman Publishing, New York), the Cutchogue resident reignites the idea of hosting an old-school party that brings people together to trade stories, nibbles, and recipes. But more importantly, it’s a party celebrating these perfectly portable desserts. What better vehicle for sugar, butter, eggs, and flour?
“Folks are passionate about their cookie recipes handed from parent to child, from friend to friend,” says Chattman, “and this is a dough that I use for a million different cookies, including my rugelach.” By incorporating cream cheese in the dough, these jam-filled pinwheels share the tangy flavor of rugelach (pronounced rug-a-lah), the popular crescent-rolled pastry and Hanukkah treat. “It’s a very rich dough, but with few ingredients, so it’s super easy to make,” says Chattman.
Although rolling the dough out, cutting into squares with a pastry cutter, and folding into pinwheel shapes may “take a little bit of skill,” Chattman insists, “it’s not hard at all, and they come out very pretty.”
“A few basic ingredients lend themselves to so many possible iterations — a world of flavors and textures — all small enough to be held in hand. A portable hug.”Lauren Chattman, author, “Cookie Swap”
The jam used to fill these origami-shaped cookies should be just as memorable. Luckily, both North and South Forks have preserve makers that grow raspberries with the help of native pollinators and search the shores, looking for just the right beach plum.
“Our red raspberry Jam is a 2020 Good Food Award Winner and a 2021 International Flavor Award Winner,” humbly boasts Blossom Meadow Farm‘s bee rancher, Laura Klahre. This small organic berry farm in Southold is committed to using on-the-ground innovations with alternative pollinators.
“Native bees, such as Mason Bees, pollinate two to three times better than the honeybees do, explains Klahre, “and that complete pollination of a flower results in higher yields and higher quality berries.” Knowing that Blossom Meadow Farm picks its fruit at peak ripeness to guarantee the best flavor in the berries and more antioxidants is reason enough to select their award-winning preserves for this recipe. Klahre’s newest release, “Queen’s Jam,” (a classic Swedish preserve made with raspberries and blueberries) would also be an excellent choice.
Craving a slightly tarter bite in this sweet treat? Look no further than Hamptons Preserves beach plum jelly, made from hand-foraged south shore beach plums by husband-and-wife team Halsey Surgan and Briana Rogers Surgan (more on this to come in 2025!) Established in 1935, this fourth generation family-owned artisanal jams, jellies and preserves company also makes a Christmas jam made with blueberries, cranberries, and strawberries with a touch of cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg.
With all this inspiration, it may be best to use a variety of jam flavors in the petite pinwheels, making them a perfect addition to a dessert buffet for the holidays or a cookie swap gathering. “A few basic ingredients lend themselves to so many possible iterations — a world of flavors and textures — all small enough to be held in hand,” says Chattman of the beloved cookie. “A portable hug.”
Blossom Meadow Farms preserves are available at Coffee Pot Cellars, 31855 Main Road, Cutchogue, open every day in December from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Hamptons Preserves are available at Eastport General Store in Eastport and the Westhampton Beach Holiday Market on Saturdays through December 28 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. inside Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church.
Cream cheese and jam pinwheels
Serves 48 cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 8 oz chilled cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces
- 1 cup unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 16 pieces
- 1/3 cup raspberry or strawberry preserves
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup gold sanding sugar
Directions
- Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the cream cheese and butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal (be careful to not over process).
- Turn the mixture out onto a lightly floured work surface and shape the dough into two 6-inch squares. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate it for at least two hours and for up to two days.
- With a lightly floured rolling pin on a lightly floured surface, roll out one of the dough squares into a rough 12 1/2-inch-by-8 1/2-inch rectangle, trimming the edges with a fluted pastry wheel so it measures exactly 12-by-8 inches.
- Use the fluted pastry wheel to cut the dough into 2-inch squares. Transfer the squares to a parchment-lined baking sheet, an inch apart, refrigerate the sheet, and repeat with the remaining dough.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Use the fluted pastry wheel to cut 1-inch diagonal slits from each corner of a square toward the center, taking care not to cut all the way through.
- Place ¼ teaspoon of jam in the center of each square. Gently lift every other point and fold it into the center, overlapping the points of the folded tips slightly over the jam. Repeat with the remaining squares.
- Lightly brush the cookies with the beaten egg and sprinkle liberally with the sanding sugar. Bake until the edges of the cookies are deep golden, 14 to 18 minutes.
- Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the cookies cool completely on the sheet. Pinwheels will keep in an airtight container for two to three days.
