This is a four layer cookie that is rich, creamy and luxurious. It is more high end pastry where only a small sliver will leave you totally satisfied. Clearly I have been binge watching "British Baking Show" and was inspired to create this recipe. I will not write a step-by-step recipe or this would be a mile long tome on cookie baking so this is for the advanced baker. The ingredients and measurements are listed with minimal instruction as needed for clarification. There is nothing difficult if you take each of the four steps as one process. It would be wise to ensure you have all ingredients and lay them out mis en place. This is a wonderful December holiday cookie recipe as the almond flavor of the marzipan is reminiscent of German Stollen. So lets get started.
The layers from top to bottom-
- Crunchy brown sugar streusel
- Raspberry paste
- Marzipan
- Shortbread cookie
SHORTBREAD COOKIE
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tea. salt
8 Tbl. butter (1 stick)
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 tea. vanilla extract
Mix flour and salt in one bowl. Cream butter, sugar and vanilla in separate bowl. Add flour mix to butter mix. Press evenly into an 8" springform pan with a parchment paper lining. Chill.
MARZIPAN
4 oz prepared Marzipan (almond paste)
Place marzipan between to sheets of plastic wrap and roll out to 8-inches in diameter. Place on top of chilled shortbread mix to fully cover as layer two.
RASPBERRY PASTE - Prepare in advance
12 oz. fresh raspberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar (white)
3 grams unflavored gelatin (1/2 of one packet)
3 Tbl. water
4 drops red food coloring
Place raspberries and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and cook breaking down the fruit with a masher. In a separate bowl bloom the gelatin, add back into the raspberries and cook until a very thick jam. Chill until it is a gel consistency then spread evenly onto marzipan for layer 3. Regular jam will not work in this recipe as it will bleed into the rest of the cookie and ooze out when eaten.
STREUSEL
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 Tbl. butter chilled, grated
1/8 tea. salt
Place flour, sugar and salt into a bowl. With a pastry cutter, cut butter into flour, sugar mixture.
With clean hands, take a tablespoon of the mixture and squeeze tight into a fist and drop into the three layers of cookie mix in the spring form pan creating curds as your final layer.
Sprinkle with approx. 1 Tbl. of sliced almonds as a decorative and flavorful garnish.
Chill down four layers while pre-heating the oven at 350-degrees. Bake for 35 minutes until the streusel is fragrant and toasted, then let cool for 20 minutes before removing from springform pan. Cool thoroughly before cutting into wedges, makes 10.
Enjoy!
