Linzer Trees
- 1 1/4 cup unsalted butter (2 1/2 sticks), softened
- 23 cup/145 grams sugar
- 2 13 cups/308 grams all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup/70 grams finely ground, roasted almonds
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup/8 ounces good-quality raspberry jam, preferably seedless
- Powdered sugar for dusting
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line baking pans with parchment or silicone baking mats.
- In a bowl or stand mixer, mix butter and sugar on medium speed until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, almond meal, cinnamon and salt.
- Slowly add dry ingredients, a half-cup at a time, to butter mixture.
- Divide dough into 3 balls.
- Place each ball between parchment paper (nonstick works best) and roll into a thin circle, about 11 inches in diameter and just over 1/8-inch thick.
- Refrigerate flat for at least 15 minutes.
- Working quickly with one sheet of dough, remove top layer of parchment, then flip onto a clean sheet and remove the bottom layer.
- Using a tree-shaped cookie cutter, cut 30 shapes for the bottoms of the cookies and place on prepared baking sheets.
- Reserve scraps to reuse for more cookies.
- Bake cookie bottoms for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges just begin to brown.
- Rest for a couple of minutes on the tray, then carefully transfer to a cooking rack.
- Repeat the process to create the tops, using a pastry tip or a straw to cut out 5 to 7 holes on the trees to resemble ornaments.
- Open any holes that close during baking.
- Meanwhile, melt jam with 1 teaspoon of powdered sugar and boil lightly for about a minute.
- Cool slightly.
- Assemble cookies by flipping the bottoms, spreading them with a scant teaspoon of jam, dusting the tops lightly with powdered sugar and then gently pressing the tops onto the bottoms.
- Store airtight between layers of wax paper or parchment for 3 days.
- Freeze for up to a month.
unsalted butter, sugar, flour, ground, cinnamon, kosher salt, raspberry, powdered sugar
Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017033 (may not work)