Movie inspiration: Die Hard (1988)
Yippee-ki-yay! In one of the first action-holiday flicks, Bruce Willis’s one-liners are instantly recognizable to those who consider this to be quintessential Christmas viewing. Even though the bad guys spoke German, we’re going to celebrate their delicious holiday traditions with this delicious Austrian-German cookie. Welcome to the party, pal!
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.