PBJ Jammy Dodgers
Sponsored By Lyle’s Golden Syrup
Jammy Dodger, a supermarket classic, a favourite of the biscuit tin. Two crisp biscuits sandwiched together with jam, simple, nostalgic, delicious. I say delicious but a shop bought biscuit like this can almost always be made better at home, using better tasting ingredients and less industrial textures. This recipe is clearly not for a classic dodger but is in the form of and inspired by the classic biscuits. The cookie itself has added flavour and texture in the form of salted peanuts. The dough also uses a little Lyle’s Golden Syrup which adds a warm caramel tone to the biscuit which goes wonderfully with the peanuts.
The filling is a classic jam but with added jazz hands in the form of a peanut butter buttercream. The flavour is balanced nicely again with the addition of the Lyle’s Golden Syrup which also adds a really nice creamy texture to the filling.
Do These Freeze?
Sandwich cookies like this are not the best candidates for freezing once baked but the dough itself can be frozen for up to a couple months.
Do you have to use peanuts?
I know some people are allergic to peanuts or just don’t like them and the good news is you can happily change the nut to a different flavour in the cookie and for the filling you could either make a traditional buttercream or simply use jam without a secondary filling.
What Type of peanut butter should you use to bake with?
Generally when it comes to baking it is better to use a commercial smooth peanut butter, unless otherwise advised. Natural peanut butter, the type that sometimes separates and has a layer of oil on top, can cause issues with texture and doesn’t always blend with other ingredients very well.
Tips on Rolling
This a dough with a high percentage of butter which can mean the dough is a little tricky to handle. To get around this make sure the dough has been thoroughly chilled before using. When you take the dough out of the fridge it will be cold and firm and hard to roll. Instead of leaving it for 10 minutes and then rolling (which can lead to a soft and sticky dough) simply bash it a little with a rolling pin. This might seem counter intuitive but this action makes the dough pliable without warming it up too much, making it easier to roll before the butter softens too much. If you are worried about the dough becoming too sticky or warm you can also roll the dough between parchment paper and transfer to the fridge if it becomes too hard to handle
PBJ Jammy Dodgers
Makes 25-30
Peanut Biscuit
325g plain flour
75g salted peanuts
150g caster sugar
225g unsalted butter, diced and chilled
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
50g Lyle’s Golden Syrup
Peanut Butter Filling
100g unsalted butter, room temperature
100g smooth peanut butter
150g icing sugar
50g Lyle’s Golden Syrup
150g raspberry jam
To make the biscuit dough add a little of the flour and the peanuts to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the peanuts are finely ground. Add the remaining flour and salt and process briefly to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. In a jug whisk together the egg, yolk and the Lyle’s Golden Syrup, whisking together until the syrup has dissolved into the egg. Pour this into the food processor and pulse just until the dough starts to clump together.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and use your hands to gently form into a uniform dough. Divide into two equal portions and press into discs, wrapping in cling film and then refrigerating until firm.
When you’re ready to roll out the cookies preheat the oven to 160C (140C fan) and line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper. On a lightly floured work surface roll out a portion of dough until it is about 3mm thick and then using a 7cm round cookie cutter cut as many cookies as possible, setting the scraps aside. Place the cookies onto the prepared baking trays and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Repeat this process with the second portion of dough. Take the cookies from the fridge and use a 3cm round cookie cutter to remove the middle from half of the cookies. Gently reform the scraps of dough into a ball and then refrigerate as before whilst you bake off the cookies. This dough can be rolled out again for more cookies.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 15-18 minutes or until just starting to turn golden on the edges. I bake the cookies lower than usual as it crisps the cookies evenly throughout without over browning them. Allow to cool on the baking tray for a couple minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the peanut butter filling place the butter and peanut butter into a large bowl and using an electric mixer beat together until smooth and creamy. Add the icing sugar and Lyle’s Golden Syrup along with a small pinch of salt and beat together until light and fluffy. If the mixture feels a little stiff add a tablespoon or so of double cream.
To assemble the cookies pipe a ring of the peanut butter filling around the edge of each base cookie and spoon a little jam into the centre. If you like a little added texture you can also sprinkle with a little extra chopped peanuts. Dust all the ring cookies with icing sugar then place one on top of each bottom cookie, sandwiching together. Once assembled the cookies are best within a day or two.
