This post is sponsored by Doves Farm Organic Flour

Can something be nostalgic if you never actually experienced said thing when you were younger? I’m sure it’s not true nostalgia but anything flavoured with peanut butter and jelly just screams childhood to me. Maybe it was the American films and TV I watched as a kid, where the pb&j sandwich was ubiquitous, who knows really. What I do know is that combination of a rich peanut butter and a fruity jam is a brilliant one and lends itself so perfectly to so many baked ideas. This recipe is another in my collaboration series with Doves Farm Organic Flours and these super simple cookies are made with their Wholemeal Spelt Flour, a brilliant alternative to regular plain flour. Doves Farm recently relaunched their packing in a fun new range of colours and designs so if you’re looking for them in the supermarket keep an eye out for the new style, and don’t forget if you’re still struggling to find flour and yeast, Doves Farm have also launched an ‘Organic Flour Baking Box’ (£11 plus delivery), available to purchase on their website and delivered direct to your door, whichcontains a great selection of their organic flours - including plain, self raising, bread and specialty flours - plus yeast for making bread, you can find out more here.  

The cookies couldn’t be much easier if you tried, this is absolutely a perfect recipe to make with the kids (big kids too) and can be whipped up in no-time. The nice thing about these cookies is they don’t need chilling before baking, you whip up the dough and get them in the oven straight away so they’re perfect for cookie emergencies, when you need something quickly.

Spelt is maybe one of the easiest grains to use when you want to swap out regular wheat flour and because of this, and its nuttier flavour, it has become an incredibly popular ancient grain. When we talk about ‘ancient grains’ it is easy to think this means we’ve been using it for hundreds of years but the truth is much more impressive. It is said that spelt has been cultivated since around 5,000/6,000 BC. Over the years, wheat became the dominant grain which we bake with and spelt was, for many years, relegated to animal feed. Since the 1970s ancient grains have been re-introduced to UK soils and thankfully now it is among one of the more popular ancient grains. Milling historic, heritage grains since 1978, Doves Farm has led the way in this and was the first in the UK to grow and produce flour from spelt.

Spelt isn’t a gluten free grain, but the gluten it does contain is different from what regular wheat flour contains. The gluten in spelt can be easier to digest for those with an intolerance to gluten (not coeliac or allergic reactions). Flavour wise, I like to compare the grain to wholemeal flour, but sweeter - no real bitterness is present, it’s a great taste that suits a wide variety of flavours. As it is also a soft flour, it makes for particularly tender recipes, just be careful not to overmix recipes made with spelt, unlike recipes made with wheat which become tough when over-worked, spelt recipes can become crumbly, so only mix as much as needed.

Doves Farm Organic Stoneground Wholemeal Spelt Flour is available from ASDA, Morrisons, Ocado and Sainsburys

Spelt Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Cookies
Makes 10 sandwich cookies

60g unsalted butter, room temperature
150g light brown sugar
1 tbsp golden syrup/honey
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
150g smooth peanut butter 
150g Doves Farm Organic Stoneground Wholemeal Spelt Flour 
85g rolled oats
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp fine sea salt

Filling
30g unsalted butter, room temperature
120g smooth peanut butter
50g icing sugar
125g raspberry jam

Preheat the oven to 180ºC (160ºC Fan) and line a couple trays with parchment paper.

To make the cookies place the butter, sugar and golden syrup into a large bowl and using an electric mixer beat until fluffy and lightened in colour, 3-4 minutes. Add the egg and mix briefly until combined. Add in the vanilla and peanut butter and mix together until you have a smooth uniform mixture. Add in the Doves Farm Wholemeal Spelt, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix briefly until a uniform dough is formed. Roll the dough into small balls (if you want to weigh them the balls of dough should be about 30g or so each) and place onto the prepared baking trays. Using the base of a flat drinking glass, thats been dipped in flour, press the balls flat into pucks. 

Bake in the preheated oven for about 12 minutes. The cookies should have a lightly browned edge and be paler in the middle. Allow to cool on the trays for a couple minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. The finished cookies will be crisp on the outside with a chew in the middle. 

For the filling place the butter into a medium sized bowl and beat together until smooth and creamy. Add in the peanut butter and beat until combined and fully combined. Add in the icing sugar and beat together until smooth and combined. 

To assemble the cookies spread a small amount of the frosting onto half the cookies and top with a small spoonful of jam. Sandwich together with a second cookie. Kept in a sealed container these will keep for about 3 days.