Eggless pandan shortbread cookies with pineapple jam

In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day, I thought I'll post my recipe for eggless pandan shortbread cookies topped with pineapple jam - an improvisation on the Singaporean pineapple tarts I grew up eating.  In fact, no festival in Singapore, whether Deepavali or Chinese New Year, would be complete without these buttery, melt-in-your-mouth tarts, and it is the one thing I seek out for whenever I'm in Singapore. The last time I was there, my aunt made me two large boxes of tarts to take back with me, most of which vanished before I touched-down on Canadian soil.

I actually made these last Christmas but what better time to post the recipe, right? I thought my eggless rendition was pretty good, and I may just make these my X'mas ritual from now onwards! Oh yeah, be forewarned - you will not be able to stop with just one!





Ingredients & Method:



Pineapple jam (to be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator) ~



l can pineapple (567g) - drain away juice and blend (fresh pineapples would be best, but canned ones are just as good)

2 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tsp lemon/lime juice

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

2 cloves 



Simmer everything together on low heat until it thickens into a jam-like consistency. This will take a while  (at least 1/2 an hour) and will require constant stirring!



Once desired consistency is reached, stir in 1 tsp cornstarch and leave to cool. This is what it should look like: 





Shortbread cookies/tart ~ 



1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup icing sugar

1/2 tsp pandan paste

1 cup flour

1/4 cup cornstarch



Cream butter until smooth, then add sugar and pandan paste and beat until creamy.



Gently stir in flour and cornstarch. Flatten into a disc, wrap in saran wrap, and let chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour.



Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thickness and cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters. I used the tart mould my mum brought me from Singapore with which you can form an indentation in the middle for the jam...sort of like making thumbprint cookies.



Fill indentations with jam. Bake for about 10-12 min. in pre-heated 350 degrees F oven.