Raspberry Almond Shortbread Cookies

I've been doing quite a bit of cooking and baking lately. On Tuesday, I went over to Natalie's house and we made these after taking a walk over town.

Natalie posed with one of the freshly baked cookies for me, and then she had me pose while she snapped a photo of me with the same cookie! Lol. Neither of us ended up eating it, either.

We substituted strawberry jam for the raspberry jam since Natalie's brother is allergic to raspberries. I thought they still tasted excellent.

Here's the recipe!

Raspberry Almond Shortbread Cookies

2/3 cup sugar
1 cup butter
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 cups flour
1/2 cup raspberry jam

Icing (see below)

In large bowl, combine sugar, butter and almond. Beat on medium speed until creamy (2-3 minutes). Reduce speed and add flour. Set oven to 350 degrees F. Shape dough into 1 inch balls, placing them on a cookie sheet. Make a thumb print in each ball and fill with 1/4 teaspoon or so of raspberry jam. Bake 14-18 minutes (until slightly brown around bottom edges). Cool completely before drizzling on the icing.

Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar (sifted)
1 tsp. almond extract
2-3 tsp. milk

In a small bowl, stir together with a fork all the ingredients until smooth. If it is too thick to "drizzle" then add a tiny bit more milk. If it is too watery, add more powdered sugar.

Makes approximately 3 dozen delicious morsels. Enjoy!

Six Days Later...

It's been almost a week since my last post. Seems a little crazy! I've been lazing around, enjoying these delightful summer days.

Of course, coffee is a must to start the day off right. I've been enjoying drinking Blue Mountain Coffee from my home country, PNG.

Being outside in the warm sunshine and taking long walks is such a blessing. The blustering heat can become annoying at times, but I would rather have it than freezing cold any day.

This is my home for a month or so. Gorgeous, isn't it?

We had a delightful pancake dinner on Sunday night with whipped cream, juicy strawberries, and crunchy peanut butter.

Ana loves to spread whipped cream on top of her pancakes.

Sweet Breakfast

Strawberries, orange juice, nutella on wheat bread, and coffee with creamer makes for an utterly sweet sensation. This was my breakfast today. I think I'll be eating healthier tomorrow. Too many sweets is not only unhealthy but it also provides my body with less energy. Yawn. I'm exhausted. I'll be back to the blogging world tomorrow. Goodnight!

The theme for Rachel at Rachel Photography's Fabulous Friday is fruit, and this is my entry.

Wonderful 19th

My 19th birthday yesterday was really great! I went to the mall and got a manicure and pedicure and went to dinner at Olive Garden. While we were on our way there, my parents called all the way from PNG to wish me a happy birthday, and when we got inside the restaurant, my friend Ash was waiting to surprise me! The day was just lovely. =)

Me 'n Ash