Linzer Star Cookies
The hollow-star tops are delicate and can fall apart when moving to the baking sheet. To keep their shape, cut a solid star and place on the baking sheet first, then cut out the center.
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar, plus more for garnish
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1/2 cup hazelnut, pecan, or almond flour
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3/4 cup seedless raspberry jam
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer at medium speed for 2 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the egg and lemon zest and beat until smooth.
- In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, nut flour, cinnamon, and salt; gradually add to the butter mixture, beating just until blended. Shape the dough into two flat disks. Cover and chill for 1 hour or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, nonstick foil, or silicone baking mats.
- Roll the dough out onto a floured surface to 1∕8-inch thickness. Cut into shapes using a 3 1/2-inch star-shaped cutter. Cut centers out of half the cookies with a 2 1/4-inch or smaller star-shaped cutter. Place on the prepared baking sheets about 1 inch apart.
- Bake the solid bottoms for 10 to 12 minutes or until just the edges are golden. Bake the star-cut tops for 7 minutes or until barely golden; cool on wire racks. Repeat with the remaining dough, rerolling scraps as needed.
- Spread the solid-bottom cookies evenly with the jam; sprinkle the remaining hollow stars with the powdered sugar. Top each solid cookie with a hollow star.
Notes
Excerpted from The Christmas Movie Cookbook. Copyright © 2022, Julia Rutland. Reproduced by permission of Simon Element, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved.