Monday, December 21, 2009

Linzer Cookies

Posted by Erin Wilburn / 4 comments » / cookies, dessert

Aren’t these cookies pretty? Don’t they just look like cookies baked by someone who can do no wrong in the kitchen? Well my friends, let me tell you, everyone has their successes and failures. Unfortunately, I failed more than I succeeded here. I don’t think I rolled the cookies out evenly, and I baked them a little too long, and out of all the cookies that had the cutouts, only FOUR did not burn. Yes. That’s right, I said four. You don’t believe me? Just look at this.

So, what did I do? Did I cry? Nope, I just laughed. And I learned my lesson, keep an eye on the oven!

Personally, I love cookies of all kind. These buttery, delicious, slightly crisp cookies are were a fun & yummy cookie in my opinion. The Boy on the other hand, only wants a cookie if it’s soft and chewy, so he wasn’t a fan of these. Especially if he was given the option between these and the Espresso Snowcaps! But that’s fine with me, because after giving the 4 away to my good friends, I had just enough of the solid, non-cutout cookies that did NOT burn to enjoy for myself!

Print

Linzer Sables

from Baking from My Home to Yours
makes 50 cookies, or 25 sandwich cookies

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups finely ground almonds, hazelnuts, or walnuts
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
scant 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 large egg
2 teaspoons water
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup raspberry jam or strained apricot jam plus 1 teaspoon water

Directions:

Whisk together the ground nuts, flour, cinnamon, salt, and cloves. Using a fork, stir the egg and water together in a small bowl.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together at medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the egg mixture and beat for 1 minute more. Reduce the speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they disappear into the dough. Don’t work the dough too much once the flour is incorporated. If the dough comes together but some dry crumbs remain in the bottom of the bowl, stop the mixer and finish blending the ingredients with a rubber spatula or your hands.

Divide the dough in half. Working with one half at a time, put the dough between two large sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap. Using your hands, flatten the dough into a disk, then grab a rolling pin and roll out the dough, turning it over frequently so that the paper doesn’t cut into it, until it is about 1/4-inch thick. Leave the dough in the paper and repeat with the second piece of dough. Transfer the wrapped dough to a baking sheet or cutting board (to keep it flat) and refrigerate or freeze it until it is very firm, about 2 hours in the refrigerator or 45 minutes in the freezer. The rolled-out dough can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or the freezer for up to 2 months. Just thaw the dough enough to cut and go from there.

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375° F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Peel off the top sheet of waxed paper from one piece of dough and, using a 2-inch round cookie cutter—a scalloped cutter is nice for these—cut out as many cookies as you can. If you want to have a peekaboo cutout, use the end of a piping tip to cut out a very small circle from the centers of half the cookies. Transfer the rounds to the baking sheets, leaving a little space between the cookies. Set the scraps aside—you can combine them with the scraps of the second disk and roll out and cut more cookies.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 11 to 13 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden, dry, and just firm to the touch. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool to room temperature.

Repeat with the second disk of dough, making sure to cool the baking sheets between batches. Gather the scraps of dough together, press them into a disk, roll them between sheets of waxed paper and refrigerate until firm, then cut and bake.

Place the jam in a small saucepan or in a microwaveable bowl and stir in the 1 teaspoon water. Bring to a boil over low heat or in the microwave. Let the jam cool slightly, then turn half of the cookies flat side up and place about 1/2 teaspoon jam in the center of each cookie; sandwich with the remaining cookies.

Just before serving, dust with confectioner’s sugar.