At one time
we baked
from recipes passed down from one generation to the next or from recipes given to
us by friends and neighbors. Today we have access to recipes from
around the world and are able to cross boundaries and bake desserts that were
once unfamiliar to us. An example of this is the Linzertorte which is
one of Austria's most famous desserts. Believed to have originated
in the City of Linz, written recipes began to appear in the early 1700s.
Traditionally this torte consisted of a crust made with flour, ground nuts
(traditionally almonds), sugar, egg yolks, spices and lemon zest that was
filled with preserves (traditionally black currant) and then topped with a
lattice crust.
Linzer Cookies use the
same ingredients as the Linzertorte but present them in a different way;
that is, two cookies are sandwiched together with a layer of preserves
or jam. Traditionally these cookies are filled with black currant
preserves but as black currant preserves are hard to find in North America
we usually fill them
with a variety of different flavored preserves, most notably
raspberry. The top
cookie, dusted with confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, has a cutout so the preserves are
visible. When cut into a round shape with a round cutout they are
known as Linzer "Eyes" (Linzer Augen). Variations now exist for this cookie using ground
hazelnuts, pecans, or even walnuts in place of the traditional ground
almonds.
There are two types of Linzer Cookie dough; White and Brown. For
the white Linzer Cookie dough, blanched almonds are used which keeps the
dough white in color. For the brown Linzer Cookie dough, the nuts are
toasted. To prevent the toasted nuts from
turning into a paste when ground, some of the sugar from the recipe is
added during processing. The sugar absorbs the oil from the nuts and prevents the nuts
from turning into a paste.
Note:
Jam and preserves are similar in that they are both a cooked combination
of fruit and sugar (and sometimes pectin). The difference being
that preserves still contain chunks of fruit, whereas jam is more like a
fruit puree.
Linzer Cookies: Preheat the oven
to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in the center of the oven. Toast
the almonds (or pecans) on a baking sheet for about 8-10 minutes (or until lightly
browned and fragrant). If using
hazelnuts, toast them for 15 minutes or until fragrant and the
skins begin to flake. Remove from oven and place the hot nuts in a dish
towel. Roll up the towel and let the nuts sit (steam) for five minutes
then rub the nuts in the towel briskly to remove the skins. Once the nuts have
cooled, place in a food processor and process with 1/4 cup (50 grams) of the
sugar from the recipe until finely ground. Set
aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk or
sift together the
flour, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of your electric mixer
(or with a hand mixer), cream the butter and remaining sugar until light and fluffy (approximately 3 minutes).
Beat in the vanilla extract, egg yolks, and lemon zest. Beat in the ground nuts. Add the flour mixture beating just
until incorporated. Divide the dough in half and shape into two rectangles about 1/2 inch (1.5
cm) thick. Wrap the two rectangles of dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (at least one hour
and up to several days).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
(177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets
with parchment paper and set aside.
Remove one rectangle of dough
from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough until it is about 1/4 inch (1 cm) thick. Using a 2
to 3 inch (5 to 7.5 cm) cookie cutter (round, square, heart, etc.) cut out the dough. Place the cookies about 1 inch (2.54 cm) apart
on the prepared baking sheet. Use a smaller cookie cutter (3/4 - 1 inch (2.54 cm)) to cut out the centers of
half of the cookies on the baking sheet. (You will be sandwiching two
cookies together and there will be a small 'window or cut out' in the top cookie
so you can see the jam underneath.)
Reroll any scraps and cut out the cookies. Remove the other half of the dough from the refrigerator and roll and cut out
the rest of the cookies. Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes or until they are
very lightly browned. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
While the cookies are cooling
place the raspberry jam in a small saucepan and heat gently until it has
thickened slightly. Strain if there are any lumps in the jam. Let
cool.
To Assemble Cookies:
Place the cookies with the cut-outs on a wire rack and lightly
dust the tops
with the confectioners' (powdered or icing) sugar.
On the bottom surface of the
full cookie (top of cookie will face out) spread with about a 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon
of jam. Place the cut-out
cookie on top and gently sandwich them together, making sure not to smug the
confectioners' sugar. Using a small spoon, fill
the cut-out with a little more jam.
Note: You can store the
unassembled cookies in the refrigerator for several days in an airtight container. It is best,
though,
to assemble the cookies the same day as serving in order to keep the cookies
crisp..
Makes about 20 - 2 inch (5 cm)
sandwiched cookies.
Recipe:
1 cup (110 grams) blanched or sliced
almonds, toasted and ground (hazelnuts, or pecans
can also be used)
Confectioners' (Icing or Powdered) Sugar for
dusting
1/2 cup seedless Raspberry or Black
Currant Preserves or Jam (can use other flavored preserves or jam)
Note:
Lemon Zest is the yellow outer rind of the lemon that contains the
fruit's flavor and perfume. Can be removed with a citrus zester or
grater. When removing the outer
rind (zest) do not remove the white pith, which is very bitter and inedible.
Sources
Beranbaum, Rose
Levy. Rose's Christmas Cookies. New York: William Morrow and Company,
Inc., 1990.
Friberg,
Bo.
The Professional Pastry Chef (Third Edition). New York: Van Nostrand
Reinhold, 1996.
Malgieri, Nick.
Cookies Unlimited. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2000.
Rodgers, Rick.
Kaffeehaus. New York: Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 2002.
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Top
25 Recipes of 2008*
*Top 25
Recipes based on actual site traffic from January 1 to
December 31, 2008.
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