Description
Delight in these buttery Linzer-style cookies featuring a tender almond-infused dough sandwiched with luscious raspberry jam and a dusting of powdered sugar. Perfectly crisp with a melt-in-your-mouth texture, these elegant cookies are a timeless treat ideal for festive occasions or everyday indulgence.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 1 cup (225 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 2/3 cup (85 g) powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup (35 g) finely ground almond flour
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups (280 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp fine salt
Filling and Topping
- 1/2 cup raspberry jam (seedless if preferred)
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large mixing bowl, cream together the softened unsalted butter and powdered sugar until the mixture is smooth and fluffy, ensuring a light texture for your cookie dough.
- Add Almond Flour and Vanilla: Incorporate the finely ground almond flour and vanilla extract into the creamed butter mixture, blending thoroughly to infuse the dough with subtle almond and vanilla notes.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour and fine salt. Gradually add this dry mixture to the butter mixture, stirring until a soft, cohesive dough forms.
- Chill Dough: Divide the dough in half, shape each half into a flat disk, wrap them in plastic, and refrigerate for 45 minutes to firm up, making it easier to handle and roll out.
- Preheat Oven: Set your oven to 350°F (175°C) to warm up while you prepare the cookies.
- Roll and Cut Cookies: Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness between 1/8 inch and 1/4 inch. Using a star-shaped cookie cutter, cut out stars from the dough. For half of the stars, use a smaller star cutter to remove a center cut-out creating a window for the jam filling.
- Chill Cutouts: Place the cut cookies on parchment-lined baking sheets and chill in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. This step helps to prevent the cookies from spreading excessively during baking.
- Bake Cookies: Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 9-12 minutes, or until the edges turn just golden. Keep an eye to avoid overbaking as these delicate cookies can dry out.
- Cool Completely: Remove from oven and let the cookies cool fully on the baking sheets; this ensures they firm up properly for assembling.
- Assemble Linzer Cookies: Dust the top cutout cookies with powdered sugar. Spread approximately 1 teaspoon of raspberry jam onto the flat whole cookies. Carefully sandwich the sugared cutout cookies on top, pressing gently to adhere.
- Storage Tips: Store the assembled filled cookies in a single layer to maintain their crisp and delicate texture.
Notes
- You can substitute raspberry jam with apricot or cherry jam for varied flavors.
- For enhanced almond flavor, add a drop of almond extract along with vanilla.
- Ensure the dough is well chilled before rolling to prevent spreading during baking.
- Use seedless jam if you prefer a smoother filling without seeds.
- Store in an airtight container in a single layer to keep cookies crisp.
