YIELD - Makes 3 dozen date cookies

Ingredients:

* 1 cup packed brown sugar

* 1/2 cup butter shortening (Yes, you read right - "shortening". *Gasp* I know!)

* 1/4 cup buttermilk or water (I have used water and/or normal milk and it turns out ok)

* 1 large egg

* 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

* 1 tsp vanilla

* 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

* 1/2 tsp baking soda

Filling Ingredients

* 1 lb of dates (3 cups - about)

* 1 1/2 cups of water

* 1/4 cup of bourbon ( you can use water if you don't want the alcohol)

Procedure

(Prepare date filling first, let cool while making the cookie batter. See below.)

* Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

* Mix brown sugar, shortening, and buttermilk, vanilla, and egg.

* Stir in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

* Heat oven to 350.

* Drop a rounded teaspoonfuls of the dough onto ungreased cookie sheet.

* place a 1/2 teaspoon of date filling on the cookie.

* Cover with 1/2 teaspoon of cookie dough.

* Place in oven and bake about 8-10 minutes.

* Remove from oven and transfer to wire rack after 10 minutes of cooling.



Bourbon Date Filling Procedure

Heat up the pound of dates, bourbon and sugar over low heat

Stir CONSTANTLY don't go anywhere!

Wait until it gets thick ( about 10 minutes)

Set it aside to cool

Procedure

* Place all date filling ingredients in sauce pan EXCEPT the nuts!

* Place pan on moderately low heat

* Stir constantly until mixture thickens ( Stay there , don't get impatient!)

* Remove from heat

* Add nuts

* Set aside and let cool while you mix up the cookie batter

The cookie portion of the recipe is straight out of the old red covered Betty Crocker Cookbook that has been around forever. The bourbon date filling has been adapted