Finnish Christmas Cookies

Authentic Finnish Christmas Cookies

1 C. AP flour

1 C. quark

1 C. butter

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 Tbsp. water

1 egg yolk

1 (9 oz.) jar plum preserves

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine the flour, quark, butter, baking powder, and water in a processor or mixer until well blended.

Roll out the dough on a flour surface to roughly 1/4" thickness. Cut dough into squares, then make a 1 1/2" slit from each corner towards the center. Fill the center of each square with 1 tsp. of the plum preserves. Fold each corner towards the center to make a star. Brush with the egg yolk and bake for 8-10 minutes.

What is Quark? Well, it's a european dairy product that I describe as a cross between cream cheese and sour cream. There are multiple varieties and textures throughout Europe, but this was the only kind I found at Whole Foods. It was roughly $4 for eight ounces. It definitely gives these cookies a smooth, unique texture, that has me thinking up other ways to cook with it.

Also special to this recipes is the plum preserves. The cookies I remember eating were made with prunes, and I think you can imagine the difference in taste when you use the actual preserves. Maybe that's why the presentation is so beautiful? Perhaps to trick you into trying them? The preserves are more traditional, but were likely difficult to come by years ago.

This is a gorgeous, buttery smooth dough that doesn't seem to be affected as it warms to room temperature.