Passionfruit shortbread sandwich cookies with raspberry buttercream

Ingredients

• 170 g (6 oz) vegan butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
• 100 g (3½ oz) icing (confectioners’) sugar
• 50 g (1¾ oz) passionfruit pulp
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 300 g (10½ oz/2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour, plus extra for dusting
• pinch of salt

For the buttercream:

• 30 g (1 oz/¼ cup) frozen raspberries, thawed and extra liquid drained
• 250 g (9 oz/1 cup) vegan butter
• 625 g (1 lb 6 oz/5 cups) icing (confectioners’) sugar
• 1–2 drops natural red food colouring (optional)

Directions

1. To make the cookie dough, mix the butter and icing sugar in a bowl until smooth and well combined. Add the passionfruit pulp and vanilla and mix well. In another bowl, whisk the flour and salt until combined. Add the passionfruit mixture to the flour and rub with your fingers until well incorporated. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F).
3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the cookie dough to about 3–4 mm (¹/8 in) thick. Using a 4 cm (1½ in) round cookie cutter, cut out the cookies and place them on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Transfer to the oven and bake for 10–15 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies start to turn golden. Allow to cool completely before filling with the buttercream.
4. To make the buttercream, combine the raspberries and butter in the bowl of a freestanding electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until just combined. With the mixer at low speed, gradually add the icing sugar, 120 g (4½ oz/1 cup) at a time, until it has all been incorporated. Continue beating on medium speed for about 2 minutes. At this point, you can add food colouring if you would like a stronger pink colour.
5. Fill a piping (icing) bag with the buttercream and pipe some filling onto the flat side of a cookie. Sandwich with another cookie, flat-side down, and continue until all the cookies have been filled. Alternatively, simply spread the buttercream on the cookies with a knife.

This recipe is from Smith & Deli-cious by Shannon Martinez & Mo Wyse (Hardie Grant, £20). Photography © Bonnie Savage

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