43/52 Apple Cookies

I really should have baked Halloween cookies this week. 

Too bad that I only thought of that now... 

(Yes, go ahead, laugh at me. No problem.)

But these apple cookies are not so bad, either. 

Except they don't have anything to do with Halloween, damnit...

Apple Cookies

Adapted from Living at Home

For the dough:

160 g butter

3 tablespoons (or bags) apple tea

200 g flour

1 packet vanilla pudding powder

salt

80 g sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons apple juice

For the glaze:

4 tablespoons apple juice

50 g powdered sugar

For the filling:

150 g apple jelly

•  Melt the butter over medium heat (or microwave until luquid), add loose tea or tea bags and let sit for about 10 minutes. If you used loose tea sieve through a fine colander, or just remove tea bags. Cool butter in the fridge until it is solid again.
• Knead all dough ingredients together until smooth. Wrap in saran wrap and let cool in the fridge for about 1 hour. Use your rolling pin to roll out dough and cut out little apples. Put a hole in half of them. 
• Note: if you don't need apple shapes and want to avoid rolling out the dough, form dough into a log, wrap in saran wrap and freeze for about 1 hour. Take out and cut off slices. Put a hole in half of them.

•  Preheat oven to 180°C (355°F). Bake cookies for about 12-15 minutes or until edges are a light golden brown. Take out and let cool completely.
• For the glaze mix apple juice and powdered sugar and glaze that half of the cookies with the hole in them. Let dry.
• Heat apple jelly to make it easier to spread and brush on those cookies without the hole. Put a glazed cookie on top, lightly pressing it on.

  what?! you think they look like a misshapen pac-man? no way!

My modifications:
I used apple juice instead of Calvados. Because I had it at home and because I didn't need the alcohol.

I used a tea called "Wintergenuss" (winter indulgence) to infuse with the butter. Besides apples it has a slight cinnamon taste.

I sliced the cookies because a) I don't have a cookie cutter shaped like an apple, b) I was lazy, and c) the most important thing is that these cookies taste like apples, not look like them.

The taste:

Like apple. Without the vitamins.
Is that a good thing, you might ask? Yes, in this case, it just may be.

What are you baking for Halloween? Something scary, I hope!