February - The Valentine month as the world normally looks forward too... my daughter and me are feb born and we do have our days to celebrate. Anyways - to spread love and cheer Baking Partners picked these Linzer cookies for the month's challenge, they don't just look good ,they taste super yumm too.
Linzer cookies are two almond flavored cookies sandwiched together with a tiny blob of jam...........
Recipe Source :Adapted from Alice Medrich, Chewy, Gooey, Crispy, Crunchy
Ingredients:
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoon /145g unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup/ 63g ground almonds
- 1/4 cup /50g granulated sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 8 tablespoon of unsalted butter
- 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest or 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 teaspoon grated orange zest or 1/4 teaspoon orange extract
- Strained or pureed good quality preserves or fruit spread
- 1 teaspoon + extra Powdered sugar for dustingMethod:Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attached. A quick stir and add the butter and extracts to it. Let them all combine to come together into a dough. Remove the dough , wrap it in a cling film and let it rest in the refrigerator for 2 hours or time permitting allow it rest overnight.
When it is ready to roll out the cookies - first ensure the dough is out of the refrigerator and is supple enough to roll but firm enough to hold the shape.
Preheat oven to 325F. Roll out the dough in between 2 sheets of wax paper to even thickness. Gently peel away the top sheet and cut out the desired shape and gently place it on the prepared baking tray.
I have used 2 trays here- first tray had the shape intact. The second one also had the shapes placed. Here, use a small heart cutter and make an impression in the center.
Place the cutter at the center of the cookie and with a knife gently remove the inner dough - leaving the shape of the cookie and the center cut out intact. Continue to do so for the rest of the cookies on the second tray. Set to bake for 15 to 25 minutes or use the time which is safe on your oven. Check out if the sides of the cookies are browning - just turn the tray around to ensure even baking. Once done remove from the oven and place it on a wired rack for cooling.
Now place the second tray cookies on a wax paper and dust them with icing sugar.
Take the cookie from the first tray and place a small blob of jam - I have used mixed fruit jam here.
Now take the sugar dusted cookie and place it in the jam so that the jam spreads out in the small heart - press gently to sandwich the cookies together.
The cookies are brittle when cooled - so remember to handle them with care so that they don't crack up.
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