I’m in love with these cherry Bakewell cookie cups. They combine all the nostalgic flavours of a classic cherry Bakewell tart with a classic cookie dough. What’s possibly better than a cookie I hear you say? A cookie cup, containing all the goodness of your favourite dessert. These have a gorgeous chewy cookie texture, made with brown sugar for that caramel-y flavour. They’re then filled with an almond frangipane filling that’s delicate and light. Finally, they have the signature icing and glacé cherry topping that you’d find on any classic Cherry Bakewell tart. And on that note, enjoy!
What is a cookie cup?
Take your flavour, soft and chewy cookie recipe and rather than baking them flat, we’re going to mould them into the shape of a cup. This will then hold whatever filling your heart desires. These cherry Bakewell cookie cups are filled with a deliciously creamy frangipane filling and are then topped with classic icing and glacé cherries.
Tips for making these cherry Bakewell cookie cups
This is a super easy recipe for anyone to make, but I can assure you these tips will help make the process easier.
Make sure you have the right equipment
For miniature uniform cherry Bakewell cookie cups, a mini muffin tin is your best friend. This recipe calls for a tin with at least 9 holes. You can certainly use the back of a spoon to press your cookie dough into the tin after baking (to create the cup that’ll hold your filling), but a double sided pastry tamper will help create that perfect crevice for your filling. I also like to use a palette knife for easy removal from the tin once cooled.
Underbake your cookies ever so slightly
We’re not talking raw dough, because no one wants that. But you want the centres a little soft to ensure you can easily create your cup. I recommended a baking time of 14-16 minutes at 170°C (fan oven). The edges of the cookies should be firm and golden, with a little give in the centre.
Create your crevice while the cookies are warm
Use your pastry tamper as soon as the cookies come out of the oven to press down into the dough. You want to push down into the sides of the tin to create a deep hole that your filling can sit in.
Run a knife around them as soon as they’ve finished baking
Carefully running a sharp knife or a palette knife around the edges of the cookie cups as soon as they’ve come out the oven will help them release once they’ve cooled compeltely.
Leave them to cool completely
To ensure your cookie cups keep their form and don’t fall apart, leave them to cool completely in the tin before using a palette knife to remove them. Run the palette knife around the edge of each muffin tin hole and then gently ease them out.
Reasons to love these Cherry Bakewell Cookies Cups:
- They’re a fun alternative to regular cookies.
- The creamy frangipane filling is divine.
- It’s an easy recipe for beginners.
Ways to upgrade these cookie cups:
Want to mix things up a bit and try a different flavour combo? This cake is super versatile so if you want to switch in a different fruit, here are my top preferences:
1. Add white chocolate chips to the cookie dough. An easy way to make your cookie dough more exciting!
2. Swap glacé cherries for real cherries. A great way to make these more beautiful, ideal for a summer party treat.
3. Add glacé cherries to the frangipane. Want more cherries? Simply add some to the frangipane mixture.
See how I made these over on Instagram!
Cherry Bakewell Cookie Cups
Ingredients
For the cookie cups
- 135 g unsalted butter softened
- 80 g Billington's Golden Caster Sugar
- 80 g Billington's Light Muscovado Sugar
- 190 g plain flour
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp Nielsen Massey almond extract
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- Pinch fine sea salt
For the frangipane
- 85 g unsalted butter softened
- 85 g Billington's Golden Caster Sugar
- 85 g ground almonds
- 15 g plain flour
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp Nielsen Massey Almond Extract
For the topping
- 24 glacé cherries
- 200 g icing sugar sifted
- Few tbsp cold water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170C / 150C fan or 350F. Grease a 12 hole mini muffin tin generously with unsalted butter, making sure to go up and over the lip of each hole and around the top of it to prevent sticking.
- Cream the butter and sugars together until pale then add the egg, vanilla and almond extract and mix well.
- Sift in the flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda, mixing thoroughly until a dough forms.
- Measure out 18g of dough and form into a ball. Place into one of the muffin tin holes. Repeat until you've used up all the dough.
- Bake for 20 minutes until golden and puffed up.
Make the frangipane
- In the meantime, make your frangipane by whipping the butter using an electric whisk until it's soft and creamy. Add the sugar and ground almonds, mixing again.
- Sift in the flour and mix once more.
- Add your almond extract and the egg, beating until you have a smooth paste.
- Fill a piping bag with the mixture and snip around 1cm off the end.
Construct the cookie cups
- Once the cookie cups have been baking for 20 minutes, remove from the oven and using the small end of a pastry tamper, press the centres of the cookie dough down into their holes to create a cup.
- Fill halfway with frangipane and return to the oven for another 15 minutes until the frangipane is golden and set on top.
- Remove from the oven. Run a sharp knife or palette knife gently around the edge of each cookie cup and then leave to cool completely in the tin.
- Sift the icing sugar, then add a little water – a tablespoon at a time. You want the consistency to be thick but pourable. Pour a little icing into each cookie cup then top with a cherry.
- Leave the tops to set and then remove from your mini muffin tin and serve.
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