Swedish Hallongrottor

Tender Swedish shortcrust cookies with small wells of raspberry jam.

Preparation: 20 min · Cooking: 12 min · Total: 47 min · 8 servings

Ingredients

• 270 g plain wheat flour — weighed, not packed into a cup
• 200 g butter — cold, cut into small cubes
• 90 g granulated sugar — for the dough
• 100 g firm raspberry jam — about 4–5 g per cookie; use thick jam
• 10 g vanilla sugar — not liquid vanilla extract
• 4 g baking powder — mixed evenly into the flour

Instructions

1. Preheat and line the tray

   Preheat the oven to 200°C conventional (180°C fan) with a rack in the middle. Set 22 small paper cookie cases, about 5 cm wide, on a baking tray.

2. Mix the dry ingredients

   Whisk together 270 g plain wheat flour, 90 g granulated sugar, 10 g vanilla sugar and 4 g baking powder in a large bowl until evenly combined.

3. Make the shortcrust dough

   Rub 200 g cold, cubed butter into the dry mixture with fingertips, then press the crumbs together briefly into a soft dough. Stop as soon as no dry flour remains; overworking makes the cookies tough.

4. Shape the wells

   Divide the dough into 22 equal pieces, about 26 g each. Roll each into a ball, place one in every paper case and press a deep well in the centre with a thumb without going through the base.

5. Fill with raspberry jam

   Spoon 100 g firm raspberry jam evenly into the 22 wells, about 4–5 g each. Keep the jam inside the wells so it does not spill and burn on the tray.

6. Bake until lightly golden

   Bake on the middle rack at 200°C conventional (180°C fan) for 10–12 minutes. Start checking at 10 minutes; remove when the cookie edges are pale gold and the jam is glossy and gently bubbling, not dark brown.

   Cookie edges pale gold; jam glossy and gently bubbling; base set.

   Bake hallongrottor: 600 seconds

7. Cool before serving

   Leave the cookies in their cases on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool for another 10 minutes. Serve only after the jam is no longer hot. Contains wheat and milk.

   Cool the jam: 900 seconds

Tips

• A firm raspberry jam stays in the wells; runny jam can overflow.

Common mistakes

• Do not overwork the dough or overfill the wells; either can spoil the shortcrust texture.

Substitutions

• Use lactose-free butter if needed; confirm the replacement still behaves as butter in shortcrust.

Storage

Cool fully, then keep in an airtight tin at cool room temperature for up to 5 days. Freeze for up to 3 months.

Reheating

No reheating needed; serve at room temperature. If frozen, thaw covered at room temperature until fully softened.

About this recipe

Hallongrottor, literally “raspberry caves,” are Swedish fika shortcrust cookies with a thumbprint of raspberry jam. Their small wells give the cookies their name.

Editorial approval does not establish independent kitchen testing. Check allergens and follow safe food handling.