Raspberry Almond Shortbread Cookies

Christmas is around the corner… days are getting busier and shorter… evenings with friends and family… catching up with loved ones after a long time… reminiscing memories of previous Christmas… drinking wine and creating more memories with your loved ones… spreading your share of kindness and love around you…. isn’t this the best season? For various reasons this season brings out the best in everyone… the contagious feeling of love and kindness is in the air…. If only this could remain forever!!

I have fond memories of my mom baking away as Christmas is approaching… the aroma from the kitchen just filled my home with joy! And I am so blessed to carry out this tradition….Thumb print cookies are very popular and easy to make if you plan ahead. It’s a favorite of mine and they make great Christmas gifts once they are packaged well.

 

 

 

I managed to bake two batches so far and I enjoyed making these buttery treats with my 6 year old for my loved ones.... So here is the recipe and I hope you enjoy baking them!

I adapted this recipe from here with a little variation.


Makes : 36 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 3/4cup  granulated sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 egg
• 2 cups and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (160g) raspberry jam

Icing

• 1 cup (120g) confectioners' sugar
• 1-2 Tablespoons (15-30ml) cream or milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and keep it aside.

2. In medium bowl mix together flour, Baking powder and salt and set it aside.

3. With a handheld mixer or a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Add egg and almond extract and continue to beat. Then add flour mixture half cup until fully combined. Then add the rest of the flour till dough is formed and for this step I used my hand in order to bind it well. If the dough is still too sticky add a little more flour to smoothen it out.

4. Chill this dough for at least 3 hours.

5. Before you start making the cookies, leave it out for some time it’s just about to soften up.

6. Roll 1 tablespoon of dough into small circles till they are nice and smooth. Lightly press your thumb in the center of each ball. If the dough cracks, smoothen it with your fingers and place it on the lined baking sheet. Fill each indentation with a teaspoon of jam.

7. Bake the cookies for 15 - 20 minutes till it’s slightly golden at the edges. Do not over bake.

8. Allow the cookies to cool for 30 minutes before glazing.

9. Make the glaze: in a small bowl whisk all the glaze ingredients together until smooth. Add more milk to thin out if needed or sugar to thicken. Drizzle it over the cooled cookies with a spoon. The glaze will quickly set in 15minutes.

 

 

 

the cookies are packed in this cute tin to gift!

Tips:

• Cookie dough must be chilled and can be made overnight. It can also be frozen for 2 months.

• Choose any flavor of jam.

• Instead of jam you can use chocolate chips or peanut butter chips.

• These cookies can be refrigerated in a tight box.                                                                                                              

 

Happy Holidays and Happy Baking!!!

All images are clicked by me







 

DIY Christmas Decor

Every year for Christmas I have managed to come up with a different center piece for my coffee table that is not too bulky and easy to handle. This year I managed to pull off a super simple DIY… all you need is a fruit stand, some pinecones or ball ornaments, a bow and a favorite birdie and here is what it looks like...

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am sure you will come up with an even better DIY… Enjoy the season!!!



Images are clicked by me

Quirkiness at Pyjama Party

Another end of an eventful year… we are nearing Christmas and I can hear myself muttering “things to do”… and while shopping online for my loved ones, I came across this cute range of Owlie hand-painted mason jars and snippety sip sippers… created by Rithika of Pyjama party… I am in love with all her product range because it’s full of color and quirkiness. Rithika was featured here on Tickled by Inspirations exactly 2 years back because I was in love with this fun and adventurous brand. If you missed reading that post please click here.

Aren’t they cute to gift someone for Christmas? Or even gift yourself!!

If you wish to get buy these please contact Rithika at   pyjamapartydesigns@gmail.com 

And click here to follow her on Facebook for updates on her products.

Enjoy your holiday shopping!!          

 

 

All images are copyright Pyjama Party

 

 

 

 

Décor love from my home

Lately I have been focusing on the significant purpose of my life and the journey towards to it is nearing… the ambiguous dream is there and it continues to thrive into reality and hopefully everything will take shape one day… hoping to reach that destination soon and not giving up. Am sure many of you can relate to what I am saying…

And as I focus on my goals and dream, I got busy moving things around my home to keep the energy flowing, with jazz playing in the background, tapping my aesthetic chords …. And I got around styling my coffee table and my living room today… I used tea lights, candleholder, books and other simple accessories to style…

Enjoy the inspiration from my home and stay tuned for more

 

 

 

 

Do you love moving things around in your home and try something completely different?

All images are clicked by me

 

 

 

WGO Fair

The recently held WGO fair was a blast that offered handcrafted jewelry, clothing, accessories, home décor, kid’s décor, accessories, bags, unique Christmas decor, paintings, photograph prints, textiles and many more. The fair was absolutely fun, lots of hard work and creativity and it filled me with creative inspiration and ideas. And I hope to get to see more such fairs here in Oman.

Here are some of the pictures of the event and cheers to all those wonderful creative people out there!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All images are clicked by me


 

Red hues for you

With the holiday season coming up soon… I started soaking in visuals of red… that helped me inspire a moodboard for you… off late I have been busy creating these moodboards to inspire the creativity in me….

Enjoy the red hues and have a fabulous day each one of you!

Image source via www.pinterest.com

Love this scarf of Salvatore Ferragamo, Image via here





Love those red wine glasses, Image via Lonny

Image source here



Image via http://www.lonny.com/



Beautiful rug, Image via Elle Décor

Image via Lonnyhttp://www.lonny.com/



Image via Lonnyhttp://www.lonny.com/



Image via Lonny

I love Mona Biswarupa's artwork, Click here to view more of her work

Image source www.pinterest.com

 

Home Tour: Residence of Jessica Nickerson from Texas

Hello everyone!! I trust your week is going well and I am sure you can’t wait for the weekend to arrive. Well for me, besides looking forward to weekends, I can’t wait to share inspirations through beautiful home tours with you all. And now it’s time for another gorgeous home tour all the way from Texas. Jessica Nickerson and her husband have always loved styling their home, making it warm, inviting, pretty and yet functional. I loved everything they incorporated in this home. And you will notice there is a perfect balance between different styles like bohemian, country and vintage. I love the way Jessica has added character and charm to her space through different textures like wood and fabrics, thereby accentuating visual interest. Jessica is also the author of her blog “House Homemade” as she wanted to chronicle her DIY home projects to share her inspiration and ideas with everyone.

 

Let’s hear more from Jessica as she opens up her home for a tour

"We've lived in our house for 8 years and have changed pretty much every surface. Our big projects include kitchen and bathroom renovations and creating a more open floor plan and then other, smaller DIY projects that I talk about on the blog HouseHomemade.us

 I've always loved design and styling my house and any other I can get my hands on. Things are constantly changing in here but when I make or thrift almost everything, no project breaks the bank. That's important for me to help people to understand. You can love your house and make it a cozy, welcoming place without going to a store and buying all the things. It takes more time to make or gather pieces you love off of Craigslist or from thrift stores but the end result is so much more fun!

The dictionary wall is one of my favorites and the tutorial can be found on my blog.

What a brilliant idea... Click here for the tutorial

Houseplants are such an easy way to make your space more homely. Stick them in a thrifted hamper or basket for a more finished look.

I just recently redid our back porch with a craigslisted table and chair set.

  

My dad made our headboard and I made-over a quilt I already had, with dye. You can search my love of dye on the blog too.

Our 2 daughters share a room. The black wall helps the Antique blankets and the entire color stand out.

Make sure you check back or follow me on Instagram @househomemade for more money saving, homey-home creating kind of tips.

Thank you for having me, Rachel!"

 

Thank you Jessica for opening up your home and giving us a virual tour!! Looking forward to more inspirations through your blog and Instagram feeds.


All images are copyright Jessica Nickerson