Jam-filled doughnuts are amazing, and so are cookies. What happens if we combine the two? We create something SUPER amazing. These jam-filled cookies inspired by powdered sugar jam-filled doughnuts are a delicious take on the classic doughnut flavor. They’re sugary, chewy, and chunky, filled with a tangy yet sweet strawberry jam, and topped with powdered sugar to give them that classic jam-doughnut effect. Made with pantry staples like butter, sugar, flour, eggs, and vanilla, these cookies will definitely become a fan favorite in your household!
Welcome to Episode 4 (also the last one 😭) of The Cookie Series. I have curated 4 epic cookie recipes that I shared with you throughout the month with tips and tricks along the way to help you become a cookie monster, master.
Check out the first three episodes of the cookie series featuring the Double Chocolate Chip Cookie, Red Velvet Cookie, and Cinnamon Brown Butter Cookie.
I absolutely love jam-filled desserts. If there is a jam-filled item on the dessert menu, you better believe that I’m ordering it. Especially when it comes to doughnuts. I don’t care for any of the overly-chocolatey, chocolate-filled, cream-filled, caramel-filled doughnuts. The one I will always keep going back to is the classic powdered sugar jam-filled doughnuts. There is something so delicious about soft, fluffy doughnuts filled with sweet and tangy jam. It beats all other fillings.
And even though after eating a powdered sugar doughnut I end up looking like I’ve eaten chalk (iykyk), it’s 100% worth it.
So when the idea of creating a jam-filled doughnut-inspired cookie came to my mind, I knew I HAD to do it. I mean, A chewy, chunky, sugar cookie with a soft, jammy center? Count me in! 🤤
This cookie is the perfect combination of sweet and tangy, chunky and soft. The cookie base is with white sugar, which gives it that super-sweet, doughnut-like flavor. I like to undertake these cookies ever so slightly to make the center so soft that it almost falls apart when you pick it up. Trust me, it tastes delicious that way!
The Cookie Dough
The cookie dough base for this jam-filled cookie is just like every other cookie we have made throughout this series. You start by creaming the butter and sugar, then add the eggs and vanilla, and finally the dry ingredients.
The only difference in this cookie dough is that it’s made with 100% white granulated sugar and no brown sugar, as compared to the double chocolate chip or red velvet cookie dough base. We also add a little extra vanilla essence to help the flavor of vanilla stand out in the cookie.
The Jam Filling
The jam filling is really as simple as it gets. You can use homemade or store-bought jam. I have used store-bought jam in mine, so you don’t have to feel guilty about not using homemade 😉.
To make the filling process easier, freeze the jam filling in tablespoon-sized dollops until they are firm. This makes it easy to handle the jam and also helps form a proper cookie dough ball without creating a mess.
Here’s the step-by-step process for filling the cookie dough with the jam filling –
- Spoon or pipe dollops of the jam filling on a sheet and freeze them for 1-2 hours until they are firm. This will help in handling the filling and also make it easier to form the cookie dough ball.
- Take your chilled cookie dough out of the fridge and form the cookie dough balls. I weigh mine at around 60 gs each.
- Flatten each cookie dough ball into a disk.
- Now, place the jam dollops in the center of the cookie dough disks. Then fold the cookie dough from all four sides around the filling and roll it into a ball using your hands. Make sure the cinnamon filling is covered with dough on all sides. Form rough circles, then let the cookie dough chill in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
- Before baking, cover the cookie dough in granulated sugar.
You can check out the full recipe video to help you understand the filling process better.
Cookie Dough Skillet Version
This jam-filled cookie can also be made in a single-serve skillet version by following these steps.
- For a small skillet, make half the recipe, for a bigger skillet with more servings, make the full recipe as it is.
- Once the cookie dough is ready, add half the dough into the skillet and spread it evenly.
- Add a layer of your favorite jam in the center of the cookie, leaving the sides empty for sealing.
- Add the remaining cookie dough on top of the jam layer in small bits, making sure to cover the jam layer properly. Spread the cookie dough around using your hands or spatula until the entire jam layer is covered and the sides are sealed, making sure not to mix it with the jam layer.
- Top with sugar and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the sides are golden brown but the center is still soft.
- Let it cool for 5 minutes, top with ice cream, and enjoy.
How To Make The Perfect Cookie
If you want to make the perfect cookie using this recipe, here are a few tips that will help you along the way –
- Cream the butter and sugars properly. In baking, ‘creaming’ refers to the process of whisking butter and sugar together until they are properly combined. Creaming is the first step in making any cookie dough, and it’s important that it’s done right to make sure that your cookie turns out chewy and chunky. While mixing the butter and sugar together, make sure that you whisk for 3-5 minutes until the butter is light and airy and you end up with a fluffy and creamy mixture.
- Chill the dough. It’s absolutely necessary to chill the cookie dough for 6-8 hours or ideally overnight. This ensures that fats in the dough solidify, which means that the cookies take longer to spread while cooking. This results in thicker, chunkier cookies. Chilling the dough also helps the dry ingredients soak up more hydration from the liquid ingredients, which results in a more flavorful cookie.
- Weight the dough for each cookie. Instead of eyeing the amount of dough you are using for each cookie, weigh it to make sure that you end up with consistent sizes for each one. I use 60gs of dough for each cookie.
- Give each cookie enough space to spread. Make sure that you are not placing the cookies too close together on the baking sheet. Each cookie should have enough space to spread properly. If you don’t leave enough space, the cookies will stick to one another while baking.
- Don’t overbake the cookies. One of the main reasons cookies turn out cakey instead of chewy is overbaking. Baking cookies is all about balance. You want to bake them long enough that the edges are set but the center is still a little undercooked while making sure that the cookies are not too undercooked and soft. Every oven works differently, so you might have to experiment to find the right time and temperature balance to bake the cookies perfectly. If you’re unsure, remember that it’s always better to have an underbaked cookie than an overbaked one.
- Shape the cookies while they’re still hot. It’s likely that your cookies will not come out of the oven perfectly round, but here’s a secret tip that will help you make them perfectly round every time. As soon as the cookies come out of the love, place any circular object like a cookie cutter, a mug, or a jar lid on top of each individual cookie and swirl it around. The cookie will still be very soft and the circular movement will shape the edges and result in a round cookie. Make sure to do this as soon as the cookies come out of the oven.
So, are you ready to turn your favorite doughnut flavor into a cookie? Let’s get started!
PS: I always measure ingredients in grams, never in cups. Using a measuring scale is the only way to bake accurately. Cups are very unreliable and can give different measurements, so I would suggest you buy a measuring scale before you start baking! If you can’t get your hands on one, you can use the online tools for converting grams into cups, however, I do not guarantee their accuracy.
PPS: if you notice a * after any word, it means that there are additional tips about it after the recipe.
Jam-Filled Cookie Recipe | Powdered Sugar Doughnut-Inspired Cookie
Equipment
- Stand or electric mixer
- Silicone spatula
- Baking tray
- Baking paper
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
- 180 gs all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 115 gs unsalted butter
- 200 gs white granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp vanilla essence
Jam-Filling
- 100 gs strawberry jam
Topping
- 100 gs white granulated sugar
Instructions
Cookie Dough
- Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl: all-purpose flour, baking, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt.180 gs all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp salt
- In a stand mixer (or a bowl with an electric mixer), add the butter and sugar and whisk together on high speed for 3-5 minutes until well combined.115 gs unsalted butter, 200 gs white granulated sugar
- Add the room temperature egg* and vanilla essence into the butter mixture and whisk together until well combined. Make sure the eggs are fully incorporated into the butter and there is no liquid left in the batter.1 egg, 2 tsp vanilla essence
- With the mixer on slow, add the dry ingredients into the batter and keep mixing on low speed until everything is well incorporated and there are no streaks of flour still remaining in the mix. You will have a nice, thick dough at this point.
- Wrap the prepared cookie dough tightly in cling film and let it chill in the fridge for 8 hours, or ideally overnight.
- Prepare the jam filling: Transfer the jam into a piping bag and pipe (or spoon) small dollops on a tray and let them chill in the freezer for 1 hour until completely set.100 gs strawberry jam
- Fill the cookie dough: Take the chilled cookie dough out of the fridge and form the cookie dough balls. I weigh mine at around 60 gs each. Flatten the cookie dough balls into a disk. Now, place the jam filling in the center of the cookie dough disks. Then, fold the cookie dough from all four sides around the filling and roll it into a ball using your hands. Make sure the filling is covered with dough on all sides. Form rough circles, then let the cookie dough chill in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
- Add the sugar for the topping in a bowl and roll the chilled cookie dough calls in the mixture.100 gs white granulated sugar
- Bake the cookies. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius and cover a baking tray with baking paper. Place the cookie dough balls on the tray (leaving enough space for each cookie to spread) and bake the cookies for 10-15 minutes, until the edges are set but the center is still soft. These cookies spread a lot so make sure you leave enough space around each cookie.
- As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, shape them using a circular object like a jar lid, a mug, or a cookie cutter. Let the cookies cool before digging in.
Cookie Dough Skillet Version
- For a small skillet, make half the recipe, for a bigger skillet with more servings, make the full recipe as it is. Once the cookie dough is ready (no chilling required), add half the dough into the skillet and spread it evenly.
- Add a layer of your favorite jam in the center of the cookie, leaving the sides empty for sealing.
- Add the remaining cookie dough on top of the jam layer in small bits, making sure to cover the jam layer properly. Spread the cookie dough around using your hands or spatula until the entire jam layer is covered and the sides are sealed, making sure not to mix it with the jam layer.
- Top with sugar and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the sides are golden brown but the center is still soft. Let it cool for 5 minutes, top with ice cream, and enjoy.
Notes
Storage:
- These cookies can be stored for up to a week in a refrigerated airtight box. Don’t forget to heat them in the microwave before serving
Make ahead:
- You can also make the dough in advance, freeze it for a few weeks and bake it whenever you want to
Tips & tricks:
- Room temperature eggs: Make sure your eggs are at room temperature as well, cold eggs also lead to deflation of cookies.
- Mixing the butter and sugar: Don’t mix the sugar and butter mix for longer than 2 minutes or you may overmix it and end up making cakey cookies.
- Chilling the cookie dough: Don’t skip the chilling step! Chilling your dough for 12-48 hours allows the sugar to combine within the dough a lot better, creating chewier, thicker cookies.
- These cookies spread a lot while baking, so make sure to leave enough space on the baking tray around each cookie dough ball.
If you love jam-filled desserts as much as I do, then you have to give this recipe a try!
Hope you enjoyed the cookie series as I did! Don’t forget to check all the cookie recipes before you go.
- Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
- Red Velvet Cookie With Cream Cheese Filling Recipe
- Bakery Style Double Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
- Kunafa Cookie Recipe
- Cinnamon Brown Butter Cookie Recipe
If you give it a try, don’t forget to let me know how you liked it in the comments, and of course, share it with me on Instagram.
Until next time!
