Linzer Heart Sandwich Cookies 2 Recipes

LINZER COOKIES (SANDWICH COOKIES)

Steps:

• Mix together flour, ground hazelnuts, 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla sugar in a large bowl. Add butter and egg yolk and knead until everything is well combined. Divide dough in 1/2, pat into discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator until firm, about 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Remove dough from the refrigerator and roll on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thick. Cut out cookies using desired cookie cutter shape. Place on ungreased cookie sheets. On 1/2 of the cookies, remove a "peekaboo" cutout using a smaller cookie cutter.
• Bake in the preheated oven just until edges are beginning to turn golden, about 5 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute before removing to a wire rack. Spread jam on the warm whole cookies and top with the cutout cookies.
• Let cookies rest until softened a bit, 8 hours to overnight. Dust with remaining confectioners' sugar just before serving.

LINZER HEART COOKIES

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar and salt. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the almonds, cocoa, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves; mix well. Add flour; mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut with a floured 3-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter. Cut a 1 1/2-inch heart from the center of half of the cookies.
• Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.
• Spread 1/2 teaspoon jam over the bottom of the solid cookies; place cutout cookies over jam. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.

LINZER HEART COOKIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Toast hazelnuts until skins darken and begin to split, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a clean dish towel, and rub vigorously to remove skins; discard skins. Place nuts in a food processor; pulse until medium fine.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar at medium-high speed until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs; beat until smooth, about 3 minutes. Beat in vanilla.
• In a large bowl, combine flour, hazelnuts, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and zest. Add to butter mixture; beat to combine, about 1 minute. Place in freezer until very firm, about 30 minutes.
• Liberally dust a clean surface with flour, and roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Using a 3-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut out seventy-two hearts. To make top halves of cookies, use a 1-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut out centers from thirty-six of the hearts.
• Transfer cookies to prepared baking sheets, and bake until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack until completely cooled.
• Lightly sift confectioners' sugar over cookie tops. Spread about 1 teaspoon jam on each of the bottom halves, and sandwich both halves together. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.