I must be feeling nostalgic lately because I keep baking food that I remember from my childhood. I don’t remember my mother even making jam drops but her mother used to. Grandma Fowler was, like my Mum, a very good cook. Simple home cooked food.
One of my favourite childhood memories of visiting my grandparents (who lived in a small country town in NSW, Australia called Warren) was that every day when my grandfather (Poppy) came home for lunch from the Ford dealership he owned, my grandmother would have prepared a hot lunch with dessert which they would eat in the dining room. They would then sit on their front verandah and chat and listen to the radio until it was time for Poppy to go back to work.
Having the big meal for lunch, using the good crockery and cutlery always seemed so exciting when we visited. Dinner at night was then very light with sliced up cold meat from lunch, sliced tomatoes and other salad and biscuits (crackers). This was very informal and served at the table where they also had breakfast, just off the kitchen. My grandparents always did this and I guess they had it right all along with having the bigger meal earlier in the day rather than at night.
My gluten-free, vegan version of Grandmas jam drops are not the same as hers. These are like soft, cake-like pillows of biscuit (cookie). The temperature you set your oven to greatly affects the type of biscuit you end up with. I like to cook them at 175°C (345°F) and they come out soft inside with a slightly crispy outer layer (gets less crispy as they cool). If you cook them at 160°C (320°F) they will be very soft little pillows but if you want a crunchy biscuit then cook them at 200°C (390°F). I find them a bit too hard at 200°C but you might prefer them that way.
- 125g vegan margarine
- 125g castor sugar
- 150g gluten free plain four
- 100g almond meal
- ¼ cup almond milk
- 1tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup raspberry jam (approx.)
- ¼ cup rice flour (approx. - for rolling biscuits)
- Pre-heat oven to 175°C (345°F)
- Use electric mixer to mix margarine until smooth. Add castor sugar and mix until all sugar has been incorporated and mixture is creamy.
- Add all dry ingredients (except rice flour). Mix until all combined.
- Add milk and mix.
- The mixture will be pretty sticky. Flour your hands with rice flour, take about 1 tbsp of mixture and roll into a small ball. Place on a tray covered with baking paper and continue until all mixture is used. I usually use my thumb to create the hole for the jam. Cover your thumb (or whatever else you are using) with rice flour and put a small indentation into the biscuit. When all done, fill the holes with jam. I usually use 2 teaspoons and scrap the jam from one into the biscuit with the other spoon.
- You can use as much jam as you like but if you are wanting tidy little biscuits, then don't overfill the hole. If you are just eating them at home yourself, go crazy - who cares if the jam overflows and makes the biscuit messy. In life, I like neat, tidy and pretty but in jam drops, I am prepared to sacrifice that for more jam!
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