Ingredients

• 2 cups - all - purpose flour
• 1/2 cup - butter
• 1/2 cup - sugar
• 1/4 cup - brown sugar
• 1 tbsp - jaggery
• 1/2 tsp - vanilla essence
• 1 - egg (large)
• 1/4 tsp - salt
• 3/4 tsp - baking powder
• 30-40 - hard candies (such as Poppins)

How to Make Stained Glass Cookies

• Pre-heat an oven to 190 degrees Celsius and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until fluffy using an electric mixer.
• Add jaggery and vanilla essence and mix well.
• Add the egg and mix for about 1 minute on medium speed until the mixture is light and smooth.
• In another bowl, sift the flour, salt and baking powder and mix well.
• Mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture. Mix gently until the flour is incorporated well.
• Wrap the dough in a plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour before you start baking the cookies.
• Put the candies in plastic bags (same colour together) and crush using a mallet.
• Take the dough out of the refrigerator and roll to prepare cookies of approximately 1/4 inch thickness.
• Use a cookie cutter to cut the dough into desired shapes.
• Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets, placing them an inch apart.
• With a smaller cookie cutter or a knife, cut shapes at the centre of the cookies.
• Use a spoon to sprinkle the crushed candy into the hollowed-out centres of the cookies, filling to the edges.
• Ensure that the crushed candies are spread out from the hollowed-out centre. If spread over the cookie dough, it will change the colour of the cookie on baking and won't look neat.
• With a toothpick, poke a small hole at the top of each cookie before baking.
• Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove the cookies (along with the baking sheet) when they begin to turn brown. Place on wire racks for at least 10 minutes to cool.
• On cooling, store the cookies in an airtight container.
• Recipe courtesy: Mad Cooking Fusions