Raisin Creme Cookies!

Sometimes when you make a recipe you start out with one thing in mind then slowly as you're mixing and stirring you start thinking about other things and what you intended is nothing like what you ended up with. I changed the recipe to begin with then baked it, ate one, and decided it would be delicious with creme in the middle! It's not always a bad thing to have something completely different from what you started out making. Take these cookies for example. 

I was intending to make a healthy applesauce cookie, then the raisins sounded like a good addition. After I baked them I decided they are sort of cake like, the way I remember the raisin creme cookies from Little Debbie. I will say, apparently these are nothing like those. But, I haven't had those in so many years I can't really say, my husband does say though, that they are nothing like those. Either way, I really like the way that these turned out. The vanilla marshmallow creme filling is delicious to me. I kinda love them with the filling. 

I'm sure you could change them up however you want to, adding nuts and so forth. I will say though that these are cake like cookies and not chewy cookies. Apparently my husband wanted to oatmeal creme cookies but never shared that with me, except his slight disappointment that I had sort of made the raisin creme cookies instead. I've made the oatmeal ones before but I need to work on that recipe a little bit. I want those to be chewier too! I almost added cranberries instead of raisins to this cookie (omitting the apple juice because the cranberries I have are super juicy), but I decided against it for whatever reason. I really like these and I hope you do too! Happy Baking!

Raisin Creme Cookies
Makes about 18 sandwich cookies (36 individual)

Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons apple juice
- 1 cup raisins
- 6 tablespoons butter, softened
- ¾ cup light brown sugar
- 1 whole egg
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, softened
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- ¾ cup marshmallow fluff
- 3 tablespoons half and half (or coffee creamer)
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375F. In a small bowl heat the apple juice for 30 seconds in the microwave. Add the raisins and stir to make sure all of them are moistened, set aside. Stir occasionally while making the cookies.
2. In the bowl of a mixer blend together the butter and sugar until fluffy, 1-2 minutes on medium. Add the egg, mix until blended. Add the baking soda and applesauce and stir to combine. Sift the flour, salt, and cinnamon into the applesauce mixture, stir until mixed.
3. Stir the raisins and apple juice into the cookie dough in the mixer bowl. Portion out the dough in 1 tablespoon dollops on a greased cookie sheet. Spread evenly into circles about ⅓” thick using a lightly greased spatula (I used an angled metal cake decorating spatula).
4. Bake for 8-9 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven, let cool on the pan for 1-2 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
5. In the bowl of a mixer blend together the 8 tablespoons of butter and 1 ½ cups granulated sugar until fluffy, mix in marshmallow fluff until combined. Add the half and half and vanilla extract and stir until blended. Sandwich two cookies together with the marshmallow fluff filling.

Printable recipe

This recipe may be linked up to:

· Inside BruCrew Life - Trick or Treat Tuesday's

· Pint Sized Baker - Marvelous Mondays 
· The Mandatory Mooch - Tasty Thursdays 
· Real Housemoms - Fabulous Fridays!
· Kitchen Meets Girl - What's In Your Kitchen Wednesday
· Alli 'n Sons - Sweet Tooth Friday 
· DJ's Sugar Shack - Whatcha Whipped Up?
· Mom's Test Kitchen - Mom's Test Meal Mondays
· The Real Housewives of Riverton - Riverton Housewives Round Up

· Mandy's Recipe Box - Totally Tasty Tuesday's

· A Pinch of Joy - Busy Monday Link Party 

· House of Hepworth's - Hookin up with HoH 

· Couponing & Cooking - Mealtime Monday 

· What's Cooking, Love? - Showcase Your Talent Thursday 

· Bacon Time with the Hungry Hungry Hypo - Anything Goes Linky
· Chef in training - Tuesday Talent Show

· Dwell on Joy - Dwell on Friday 

· Six Sister's Stuff - Strut Your Stuff Saturday

· A Slice of Southern - Southern Sundays