Day Four of the 12 Days of Global Cookies –
Classic Linzer Cookie Recipe
Cookie season continues with these Classic Linzer cookies!
Linzer cookies are adapted from the Austrian Linzer Torte and I have gone traditional. An authentic Linzer Torte includes blackcurrant jam and, since blackcurrant is my favorite flavor of jam, that is what I have used in my Linzer cookie recipe. Feel free to change out the jam if you prefer.
Raspberry is especially nice with the flavor of this lightly spiced cookie!
12 Days of Cookies, Global Edition!
Check out the other cookie recipes that will be on my cookie tray this year:
Day One – Brown Butter Snickerdoodles
Day Two – Mint Brigadeiro
Day Three – Spumoni Cookies
Day Four – Classic Linzer Cookies
Day Five – Gingerbread Cookies
Day Six – Chinese Almond Cookies
Day Seven – Orange Cardamom Shortbread Cookies
Day Eight – Russian Pryaniki, still perfecting this recipe!
Day Nine – Ginger Cookies
Day Ten – Japanese Pocky modified for The NYT Cooking Recipe
Day Eleven – Plum Ginger Rugelach
Day Twelve – Alfajores
Extra! – Buckeyes aka Peanut Butter Balls
Classic Linzer Cookies
30
servings10
minutes10
minutesIngredients
100 grams (1 cup) almond flour
100 grams (1 cup) powdered sugar
50 grams (¼ cup) brown sugar
170 grams (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter
285 grams (2 ¼ cups) all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Scant ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 egg yolks, at room temperature
2 Tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract
½ cup jam or fruit preserves
⅓ cup powdered sugar for dusting
Directions
- Place the almond flour, powdered sugar and brown sugar in a food processor. Pulse until well combined, about 15 to 20 pulses. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture looks sandy and crumbly, about 15 pulses.
- Add the flour, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Pulse 5 times. Add the egg yolks, heavy cream and both extracts. Pulse until the mixture begins to stick together. Do not over mix.
- Dump the dough onto a lightly floured countertop and bring together with your hands. Divide into two balls and wrap them in cling wrap. Refrigerate for at least one hour.
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Roll one half of the dough out to about ⅛" thick. Cut out your chosen shapes. Cut a small hole in your chosen shape in half of the cut out cookies. Repeat the other half of the dough. Chill for 15 minutes or until the oven is ready.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until beginning to brown around the edges. Every oven is different so keep an eye on them. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 2 to 3 minutes then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- To assemble, place about a teaspoon of the jam on the bottom cookie (the one without a hole.) Dust the top cookies (the ones with the holes) liberally with the powdered sugar. Carefully place the dusted cookie on top of the jam covered cookie like a sandwich. Serve on a tray without stacking. Store airtight for up to one week.
Notes
- Recipe adapted from America's Test Kitchen
JENNIFER says
Followed the recipe exactly, chilled the dough also. The dough was fragrant and seemed the right consistency – but it wouldn’t roll out! It was crumbly and impossible to work with. I added butter, and it immediately began to be too runny even with a small amount. I added a bit more flour to try and salvage it – it became crumbly as it was from the start. I will not be using this recipe again, despite the beautiful dough.
Tanya Ott says
I'm sorry that you had a problem with rolling out the dough. Linzer cookies are meant to be very short - meaning crumbly - but I've never had a problem with the dough not coming together. If this is an issue, I would recommend that you add a little additional cream instead of butter. Cream will help the dough stick together but adding butter will increase the crumbly nature of the dough. Just add extra cream about a teaspoon or two at a time and then bring together with your hands like you would making shortbread. Adding too much will make the dough sticky and the final cookies too dense.
Mary says
Lovely cookies.
I covet your Cookie Cutter! :))
Tanya Ott says
Thank you! It is actually two cutters - one is the ornament shape that I found at The Chef Shop and the hole was cut out with a small clay cutter that was in a kit from Michael's.
Cheree Hull says
Beautiful! Hitting “print” again!
Tanya Ott says
Thanks! 🙂