The Doctor might be an era-hopping, space-traversing Time Lord, but he is still quintessentially British and that means that he loves his tea and biscuits (that’s cookies for you Americans). And his favorite biscuit for tea time is a nice jammie dodger.
What is a jammie dodger you say? It’s a shortbread sandwich cookie, I mean biscuit, that is layered with jam and has a window in the top biscuit to showcase the jam. They’re both elegant-looking and delicious, making them the perfect British tea biscuit. But they can also be a little bit dangerous, as my family found out the hard way, which makes them perfect for the Doctor.
Whether it’s a friend or an enemy dropping in for tea he’ll be ready for them! Continue on for our Doctor Who Jammie Dodgers!
Doctor Who's Deadly Jammie Dodgers
Fans of Doctor Who know that the Doctor's food preferences change with each regeneration. Sometimes he loves bananas, which inspired our Doctor Who Banana Bread, however, we have yet to learn what David Tennant's 14th Doctor loves to eat!
Perhaps his Doctor's favorite treat is a yummy jammy dodger and a cup of tea. My spin on them is delicious and potentially deadly (see the article, and you'll understand) making them the perfect snack to have around for when either friends or enemies unexpectedly drop by.
And don't forget to check out the final Doctor Who 60th Anniversary special, "The Giggle" and the Christmas episode, "The Church on Ruby Road" arriving later this month, featuring Ncuti Gatwa as The Doctor and Millie Gibson as Ruby.
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 cup butter
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 Tbsp cold water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup jam of choice (I used mixed berry and apple butter)
- powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Cube the butter, place it back in the refrigerator to chill during the next step.
- Add the flour, sugar, and salt to a large bowl.
- Cut in the chilled butter until the mixture is crumby.
- Stir in the egg yolk, water, and vanilla until mixture forms a ball. You may have to use your hands for this part.
- Lightly flour a sheet of parchment paper. Roll the dough out to 1/8 in thickness. Slide dough and parchment paper onto a baking sheet. Refrigerate the dough and pan until firm (about 10 minutes).
- Using a lightly floured 2.5 inch round cookie cutter, cut out 24 rounds (quickly reroll scraps if you need to). Cut centers out of half the cookies.
- Place all the cookies 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Bake at 325°F for 15-20 minutes until the edges are lightly browned.
- Cool on pan for 2 minutes, then move to wire racks to cool completely.
- Dust the window cookies with powdered sugar.
- Cover the solid cookies with 2-3 teaspoons of your chosen jam.
- Place a window cookie on top of each solid, jam covered cookie.
- Plate up and enjoy!
Keep things chill for this British biscuit recipe
Temperature is always very important when baking and typically, for cookies, you want to keep the dough cold so that the butter stays firm and the cookies don’t go flat. But with a shortbread cookie, it’s even more important. Shortbread has a lot of butter, in fact, it’s almost all butter. It’s very important that it stays cold, or the butter will run out of the dough before it can fully cook, and you’ll be left with a flat, burned mess.
So take the time to chill the dough after each step, just like the instructions say. Use the downtime to clean up behind yourself, that way when the cookies are done you can relax with a cup of tea and not even feel guilty about the destruction you left behind you (rather like the Doctor).
Careful with powdered sugar on your Doctor Who jammie dodgers
Also known as confectioner’s sugar or icing sugar, powdered sugar can be a menace. It makes an absolute mess everywhere when decorating. And eating something covered usually makes it look like a bomb went off on you. Like cinnamon, powdered sugar resists mixing with water. That includes saliva. And like cinnamon, if you get too much in your mouth at once you will choke. My family discovered this the hard way while taste-testing the jammie dodgers. I almost killed a couple of them (one of them twice, which got me thinking about natural selection…).
Now, I don’t tell you this to scare you or discourage you from using powdered sugar. I’m just saying be careful. Use a sifter or fine mesh strainer to help sprinkle the powdered sugar evenly without overdoing it. And don’t try to shove the cookie in whole! Take small bites, people (you know who you are).
Get creative with the cookie windows and have some fun with jam
Traditionally, jammie dodgers are round cookies with circle windows, but don’t be afraid to have fun. I used a scalloped cutter for my cookies to give them a little flair. I almost used a small snowflake cutter I have for the window, but it was just a little bit large. If you have a cutter with a fun shape, go ahead and substitute it, it will make your cookies really pop, especially if you’re making them for a theme and you have a corresponding cutter.
Usually, jammie dodgers are made with either raspberry or strawberry jam. I opted for both and used mixed berry jam. Personally, I don’t care for jam, but I love apple butter. So I also made some with apple butter. Feel free to make yours with whatever jam you like best. My favorite part of cooking is tailoring recipes to my tastes. I would recommend getting seedless jam though, no one likes getting the seeds stuck in their teeth.
After you’ve decided on a filling, it’s time to spread it on. It can be tempting to pile the jam on. The problem is that when you sandwich the window cookie on top, jam is going to ooze out everywhere. It’s going to run down the sides, it’s going to squish out the top, and it’s going to look messy and gross instead of pretty and elegant. And these are supposed to be a little elegant looking. So it’s okay to use a fair amount of jam on them, but don’t overdo it.
Doctor Who jammie dodgers are best eaten fresh
These cookies are perfect for a tea party, but they aren’t the kind of thing you can make up ahead of time. The jam will soak into the shortbread and make it soft and mushy. Moisture will also affect the powdered sugar. Instead of looking pretty and white, the sugar will look slimy and yucky.
The dough can be made ahead of time. It can even be rolled out and baked. But don’t assemble them more than a couple of hours before you’re going to eat them, and don’t keep them in an airtight container once you do. Just bake them up and then relax with a nice hot “cuppa” tea. Perhaps while watching the Doctor in the latest Doctor Who 60th anniversary special.
Doctor Who airs on BBC in the UK and on Disney+ around the world. Let us know on social media @mycosmiccircus or in The Cosmic Circus Discord if you plan on making some Doctor Who jammy dodgers for your Time Lord celebration!
Doctor Who: The Giggle is the Best of the 60th Anniversary Specials
Review: Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Special “The Star Beast”
Doctor Who Cosmic Cuisine: The Ninth Doctor’s Banana Bread
