When winter days were long in the Midwest, women enjoyed spending time by the heat of the cook stove; the kitchen was by far the most comfortable room in the house. It was a daily occurrence to bake at least one batch of good things. These filled cookies were for the "fancy" cookie plate and were served on special occasions. They could be filled with chopped raisins, dates, apricots, or whatever fruit did not contain much liquid. I wonder if these cookies ever sat around on the counter for long, because they are quite a treat. I crossed the line with the cookies in the photo above by not making the filling from "scratch," but by using a jar of prepared mincemeat and apricot jam instead.

Cookie Dough:

Mix well the above ingredients or place in food processor.

Add dry ingredients alternately with the liquid:

The dough should be very stiff (usually more flour is necessary). Chill the dough and roll it out adding an ample amount of flour to the rolling pin and the cookie cutter. The filling is placed between the top and the bottom cookie before it is baked. Bake at 350 degrees until the top cookie is nicely browned, about 30 min. This recipe makes about 3 dozen cookies.