Linzer Cookies

Linzer Cookies

After travelling to Germany and being treated to a linzer torte,  I was inspired to try these linzer cookies. The cookies have the same taste as the torte, but are easier to make and to share.

Toasted ground almonds are an important dry ingredient. As you can see, these are sandwich cookies. The bottom cookie is covered in raspberry jam and the top cookie has a cutout in the center. Typically, the cutout is round, but I have several miniature cookie cutters, so I thought it would be fun to use them. The results look almost look like ornaments, don't they?

---

Yield: 18 cookies            Total time 3+ hours

Ingredients
2/3 cup almonds
1/2 cup packed all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 12-oz jar seedless raspberry jam
2 tablespoon powdered sugar for dusting (optional)

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread almonds on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in the preheated oven until lightly browned and fragrant, about 6-10 minutes. Be careful not to over-heat. Let cool.
2. While the almonds cool, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.
3. Pulse the almonds and a 1/4 cup of the brown sugar in a food processor until they are finely ground.  (Over-grinding will produce almond butter.)
4. In a large bowl, beat the butter and remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar with a hand mixer until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
5. Reduce speed to low and gradually add the ground almonds, then add the flour mixture in several additions. Mix until just combined being careful not to over-mix.

Directions (cont.)​
6. Divide the dough in half, shape into disks, wrap securely in plastic wrap, and refrigerate to hours or until firm but not hard. 
7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
8. On a lightly floured surface, roll out each piece of dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut out using cookies with a 3-inch cookie cutter. Place on baking sheet. 
9. Using a smaller cookie cutter, cut out the centers of half of the cookies on one of the baking sheets. (You can re-roll the scraps to make more cookies)
10. Bake one sheet at at time, rotating the cookie sheet half way through until the edges of the cookies begin to brown, 8-10 minutes for the bottom cookies, and 6-8 minutes for the top cookies. Cool slightly, then transfer to a wire rack.
11. When the tops are cool, you may dust them generously with powdered sugar.
12. When about ready to serve, spread about a small amount of raspberry jam on the bottom cookies and add the tops, pressing gently. Keep in a sealed container at room temperature for up to five days.
Note: These cookies can be crumbly, so handle with care.

​This recipe is adapted from Real Simple , November 2010

​I hope you enjoy this recipe. Let me know if you've tried it and how it turned out.

Good cooking to you,
​Linda
​​Note: Would you like a printout of this and other recipes? These directions may help:
Use your mouse to select only the text you want to copy rather than the entire page. Then press Ctrl+C, open your Word program and press Ctrl+V to paste the semi-formatted text. Print it from there.