These are almond shortbread cookies with a raspberry jam center. They're sweet, crunchy, and absolutely delicious! They can be made in advance and assembled when ready to serve. Linzer cookies are traditional for Christmas and wonderful for Valentine's Day or just because you crave spice and sweetness.
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Nutty and jammy
Being huge fans of this Linzer tart, we thought it was time for the cookie version, which features a simpler dough but is still a showstopper as part of the holiday cookie tray.
They are nutty and pretty, with a layer of jam that perfectly balances crunchiness and sweetness.
Raspberry jam is the classic filling for these Austrian cookies, but you can use apricot, fig, cherry, or even chocolate ganache and Nutella for a modern twist. It's versatile, like a thumbprint cookie filling.
The original Viennese linzertorte (named after the city of Linz in Austria) is a cake, but I feel the tart and cookie versions are more festive. They're a must and part of our repertoire of Christmas cookie recipes at our house.
If baked as plain almond cookies, they can be sandwiched with dulce de leche to make tea-time alfajores.
Ingredient Notes
Quantities are listed in the recipe card towards the end of this post. The Ingredients page has more details and lists the brands we use.
- Almond flour: If you can't access almond flour, you can use finely ground almonds. Measure the same amount of whole almonds and grind them.
- Baking powder: make sure it hasn't expired.
- Almond extract: it's optional, but I like that it adds another layer of flavor.
- Cinnamon: any ground cinnamon you normally use works fine.
- Raspberry jam: the better the jam, the better the flavor of the cookies.
Variations & substitutions
- Nuts: almonds are traditional, but you can use other ground nuts in the dough.
- Spices: Add ground spices like cardamom, nutmeg, and ginger in addition to, or instead of, cinnamon.
- Fillings: use apricot jam, plum, black currant preserves, or something different like lemon curd, Nutella, or chocolate ganache (white or dark). The sweetness will vary (sometimes by a lot) depending on the filling.
- Boozy: Add a tablespoon of liqueur to the jam. Raspberry jam goes well with nut liqueurs (amaretto, Frangelico), brandy, or cognac.
Kitchen notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, utensils and equipment needed, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend tracking how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Make the dough ahead: The dough can be kept refrigerated for several days or frozen for a month, and it can be well wrapped. Thaw in the fridge the day before rolling.
- Storing: the cookies last for a week or two in an airtight container or cookie tin. After they are filled, they can be stored for a couple of days at room temperature and a few more in the fridge, always in an airtight container. If you store them in several layers, place a piece of parchment paper between them so the jam doesn't stick.
- Glaze: you can add a simple powdered sugar glaze as we do with the strawberry jam cookies.
- Mix the soft butter with the sugar and egg. Add the flavorings and mix well. I use a silicone spatula, but you can use a mixer for this part.
- Add the almond flour first, and then the flour mixture. Use a spatula to integrate it until smooth and soft.
- Make a disc (or two) of dough and place it on a piece of plastic wrap or a freezer sheet (what I use).
- Cover it well so it doesn't dry out, and chill for at least 1 hour before rolling.
Vintage Kitchen Tip
The almond cookie dough can be made ahead and kept in the refrigerator for a week or in the freezer for a month. Always very well wrapped to avoid dryness.
Cutting and baking
- Rolling the dough: It must be cold. Work in batches with small pieces, wrapping and refrigerating the rest.
- Cookie cutter: You need two cutters of different sizes. I use different ones and stick to solid shapes. Round ones, with smooth or ribbed edges, are my favorites. Depending on the season, you can make heart or star-shaped cookies. You can also mix shapes, like a large star shape, with a round, smaller cookie cutter for the center.
- How big should the center be? I like the jam to be a star, so I make a pretty large hole. Other recipes call for a smaller center. It's up to you.
- Recommendation: If you're gifting these jam cookies, cut out a smaller center. They will be easier to stack on a tray or wrap if needed.
- Baking time: use two different cookie trays, one for the large cookies and the other for the small ones and the rings. The latter will take less time to bake. If you're baking all of them together, check the smaller ones and take them out before the larger cookies.
- Use a lightly floured surface for rolling the almond dough, just enough for them not to stick.
- You'll have cookies of three different sizes: rings, small rounds, and large ones. See below for ways of using the extra cookies.
Vintage Kitchen Tip
Handle the rings carefully, as they have thin edges and break easily. Transfer them to the baking sheet using a wide spatula. If necessary, work with small batches of dough so it stays cold.
Dust with sugar
The cookie rings are dusted with powdered sugar before being assembled.
Jam center
Place a fat tablespoon of raspberry jam in the center of the large cookies and spread it, leaving space at the edges.
Test one and see how much you need for each cookie.
Top cookie
Place the rings on the jam and press to make a sandwich. The jam should act as glue to keep the filled cookie together.
Vintage Kitchen Tip
Due to the moisture in the filling, filled cookies tend to soften with each passing day. So these jam cookies (or French raspberry lunettes) are crunchy at first and softer afterward.
Making Linzer tart cookies means you'll have small almond cookies left. They're the rounds that you take out to make the rings.
We always make alfajores, which are dulce de leche filled cookies.
But feel free to choose other fillings, like Nutella (hazelnut spread), almond butter, chocolate ganache (white or dark), peanut butter or almond-flavored cream cheese filling.
Almost anything goes as almonds pair with so many flavors.
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Linzer Tart Cookies
Ingredients
For the cookie dough:
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest
- 1 cup almond flour
- ¼ cup powdered sugar, maybe more, for sprinkling before assembling
For the filling:
- 1 cup raspberry jam, the better the brand, the better the cookies
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix 1 cup unsalted butter with ⅔ cup sugar until smooth. I use a silicon spatula, but you can use an electric mixer or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (great if you're doubling the recipe).
- Add 1 egg and 1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest (or a mix) and continue to integrate until it begins to come together.
- Add 1 cup almond flour and mix well.
- Sift the dry ingredients (2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon baking powder and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon) and add them to the butter dough in two parts, mixing until it starts to come together.
- Transfer to a clean counter or working surface, and finish gathering it into a smooth dough with no traces of flour or dry ingredients. Handle the dough as little as possible. No need to knead it.
- Divide it into 2 parts, make flat disks, wrap well, and chill for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter or use baking spray to grease cookie sheets or line them with parchment paper.
- Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it out on a lightly floured counter until it is no more than ¼ of an inch (about ½ cm) thick. Keep the rest of the dough refrigerated.
- You will need two similar cookie cutters; one must be two sizes smaller than the other. Cut rounds (or other shapes) with the large cutter. With the smallest cutter, cut a circle in the center of half of the cookies. You will have large cookies, rounds, and small cookies.
- Gather the scraps, roll, and cut out cookies until all of the dough is used.
- Bake separately because the smaller ones and the round ones take less time. About 10-15 minutes, depending on the size. If you bake them together, check and remove them at different times as needed.
- Let the cookies cool on a wire rack.
- Place about a tablespoon of jam in the center of the large cookies and spread it lightly, leaving a bit of space around the edges.
- Sprinkle the cookie rings with ¼ cup powdered sugar and place them over the jam, making sandwich cookies.
- With the small cookies you can make alfajorcitos by sandwiching them with dulce de leche, or eat them plain.
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