Linzer Sables Recipe
- 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 fine salt
- Scant 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons water
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
- 3/4 cup raspberry or smooth apricot jam
- Combine nuts, flour, cinnamon, salt, and cloves in a large bowl and whisk to aerate; set aside.
- Place egg and water in a small bowl and beat with a fork until pale yellow and mixed thoroughly; set aside.
- Place butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer) and beat on medium speed until smooth and lightened in color, about 3 minutes.
- Add the egg mixture and beat until combined, about 1 minute.
- Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle with a rubber spatula.
- With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture, mixing only until the flour disappears into the dough, about 1 minute.
- (Dont work the dough 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 mixing the ingredients with a rubber spatula.)
- Divide the dough in half and form it into 2 balls.
- Place 1 ball between 2 large pieces of waxed paper or plastic wrap.
- Flatten the ball with your hands into a disk, then roll with a rolling pin, turning the dough over frequently so that the paper doesnt cut into it, until its 1/8 inch thick.
- With the waxed paper or plastic wrap intact, transfer the dough to a baking sheet; set aside.
- Repeat with the second ball and place on top of the first piece.
- Refrigerate or freeze until the dough is very firm, about 2 hours in the refrigerator or 45 minutes in the freezer.
- (The rolled-out dough can be wrapped tightly and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Thaw the dough enough to cut the cookies, and go on from there.)
- Heat the oven to 375 degrees F and arrange a rack in the middle.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
- Remove a round of dough from the refrigerator or freezer and place on a work surface.
- Remove and discard the top sheet of waxed paper or plastic wrap.
- Using a 2-inch round or fluted cutter, stamp out as many rounds as possible.
- Using a 3/4-inch round or fluted cutter, stamp out the centers of half the rounds.
- (Reserve the stamped centers in a scrap pile to reroll later.)
- Transfer all the rounds to the prepared baking sheet and space them 1/2 inch apart.
- Repeat rolling and cutting with the second piece of dough until the baking sheet has 24 rounds.
- Bake until the cookies are light golden brown, dry, and just firm to the touch, about 9 to 11 minutes.
- Immediately transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the first batch is baking, gather the scraps, press into a disk, and roll between sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap.
- Place on a baking sheet and refrigerate or freeze until firm.
- Repeat cutting, baking, and cooling with the remaining dough.
- (You can reuse the parchment.)
- Dust powdered sugar over the cookies with the cut-out centersthese are the tops of the sandwiches; set aside.
- Flip the remaining cookies upside down and evenly spread 1 teaspoon of jam on eachthese are the bottoms of the sandwiches.
- Gently place a powdered-sugar-dusted cookie top on each bottom.
ground almonds, flour, ground cinnamon, salt, ground cloves, egg, water, unsalted butter, granulated sugar, powdered sugar, raspberry
Taken from www.chowhound.com/recipes/linzer-sables-29087 (may not work)