Jam Thumbprints

I can't help but think that these are the closest Western equivalent to our Chinese pineapple tarts which Chinese women whip up in truckloads come the Lunar New Year. So very more-ish and terribly addictive, these Jam Thumbprints from Claudia Fleming's The Last Course just melt in your mouth before an explosion of the sweet jam bursts onto your tastebuds. The recipe is really for Quince Jam Thumbprints. But the quinces proved too tart for me, even after hours of simmering over a stove, so I substituted it with raspberry jam instead and we were happy campers indeed. Strawberry jam didn't work so well; the combination was overly sweet for my liking. As Fleming suggests, these cookies can be eaten on their own as well, with a dusting of icing sugar. Neat, they reminded me of yet another Chinese cookie, the Walnut cookie, which is sold in every traditional Hong Kong confectionary.