A Day Full of Flowers + Filoli Quince Jam Thumbprint Cookies

Yesterday one of my best friends took me, and another best girlfriend, to Filoli in Woodside. You can read about the historic house and garden at their website.

Jenn's birthday is in March; mine is in May. So, an April girls' day is the perfect in-between birthday celebration. Pia treated us to a delicious picnic brunch before we headed in to the grounds.

We strolled through the gardens, sticking our noses in blossoms, and soaking in the beautiful Spring day.

And afterwards, we ducked into the gift shop and picked up some goodies. I bought a jar of Filoli wildflower honey and a jar of quince jam. I love quince. If you're unfamiliar, here's a piece I wrote for Edible Monterey Bay in August 2014: Queen of Quince Takes Her Show on the Road.

Ingredients makes approximately 30 cookies

3/4 C butter, room temperature
3/4 C organic granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
2 C flour
1/2 C ground almonds
2 t gin
quince jam

Procedure
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Blend in the egg yolks until incorporated. Stir in the flour and ground almonds until a flaky dough is formed. Add in the gin, gently working the dough until it forms a ball. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes before proceeding. While the dough chills, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Pinch off pieces of dough and form into small balls, about the size of a walnut in its shell. Place each ball onto a parchment or silicone-lined baking sheet, pressing a "thumbprint" into the center of each and slightly flattening. (The cookies will not spread, so make them the size that you want!)

Add about 1/2 t to 1 t of quince jam to each thumbprint. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cookies cool for several minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

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