Raspberry Linzer Cookies
Gorgeous raspberry jam-filled sandwich cookies made with toasted hazelnuts, citrus zest, cinnamon and almond extract. Raspberry linzer cookies are in the shortbread cookie family, buttery, delicate and spiced perfectly to compliment your favorite jam.
Which Cookie Cutters Make the Best Linzer Cookies?
You’ll need one large cookie cutter, approximately 2 1/2 inches across, and one small cookie cutter, about 1 1/2 inches across. Play around with coordinating cookie cutters depending on the time of the year! The heart ones I used were perfect for Valentine’s Day, but you could also do a large/small star shape or large/small flower shape. You can use mini letter cookie cutters inside of a large heart shape as well to personalize for a wedding shower. These cookies are showstoppers and really grace the table for so many occasions…the possibilities are endless!
Raspberry Linzer Cookie Ingredients
- Hazelnuts – You will start with whole hazelnuts and roast them to bring out their delicious flavor and also remove the skins. You can also substitute slivered almonds that have been toasted if you’d like.
- Butter
- Granulated sugar
- Egg yolk
- Orange or lemon zest – Or, use a combination of both!
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- All-purpose flour
- Cinnamon
- Salt
- Raspberry Jam – You can use a different flavor of jam as well! Blueberry is also very good.
- Powdered sugar – For dusting on top of the cooled cookie “tops”
How to Make Raspberry Linzer Cookies
Toast Hazelnuts and Make Hazelnut “Flour”
- Spread hazelnuts in an even layer onto an ungreased sheet pan and toast in a 325 degree oven until fragrant and their papery skin begins to crack. This will take between 10-20 minutes total, depending on the size of your hazelnuts. Check them and give the pan a good shake after 7-10 minutes. Remove from oven or continue toasting for another 10 minutes.
- Transfer the toasted nuts to a plate.
- While still warm and working with half of the nuts at a time, rub hazelnuts with a clean tea towel to remove the skins. Don’t worry if you can’t remove all of the skins!
- In a food processor, pulse nuts until finely ground and slightly crumbly, being careful to not over-process into a paste.
Make Linzer Cookie Dough
- Incorporate dry ingredients (all-purpose flour, cinnamon, and salt) in a bowl using a whisk. Stir in the ground hazelnuts.
- In a large bowl, beat sugar and butter until pale and fluffy with a paddle attachment of a stand mixer or an electric beater. Stir in the egg yolk, lemon/orange zest(s), vanilla extract, and the almond extract, scraping the sides of the bowl with a sturdy rubber spatula as needed.
- Gradually add flour mixture until just blended, being sure not to overwork the dough. The dough will be soft.
- Divide dough into four equal portions, wrap in parchment or plastic wrap and press into a disc shape. Place dough in refrigerator and chill for at least 1/2 hour.
Roll Out & Bake Linzer Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. These are delicate cookies and they will be much easier to transfer once baked if they are lined.
- Working with one disc at a time, roll out linzer dough on a generously-floured surface to a thickness between 1/4 inch and 1/8th of an inch. I like to aim for the thinner side, since you’ll be sandwiching them and they will get quite thick. You can also place the dough between two sheets of wax paper if you prefer to use less flour.
- Stamp the dough with the large cookie cutter.
- Stamp half of the large cookies with a little window with the small cutter. Ideally, you’ll have half large cookie bases and half window tops to assemble them into the linzer sandwich cookies.
- Repeat with the remaining discs and re-roll all scraps to use up all the dough.
- Arrange cut-out cookies, including tops, bottoms and small scrap cut outs on the lined cookie sheets, spacing them about an inch apart.
- Bake cookies for 10-13 minutes, until just starting to brown around the edges and firm to the touch.
- Using a thin spatula, remove cookies from cookie sheet and cool completely on cooling rack before assembling.
Assemble Cookies
- Arrange all top “window” cookies on a cookie sheet or cooling rack and dust with powdered sugar.
- Spread about 1 teaspoon of raspberry jam onto each cookie bottom, leaving a little border around the edges.
- Place one “window” cookie on top and press gently.
How Long Do Raspberry Linzer Cookies Keep?
- Store raspberry linzer cookies at room temperature in a cookie jar or sealed container for up to 3 days. Keep in mind they may soften from the moisture in the jam.
- Alternatively, you can store cookie tops and bottoms in the freezer for up to 2 months and dust them with powdered sugar/fill them with jam just before serving, after thawing them overnight.
More Cookie Recipes to Try
Chocolate Sugar Cut-Out Cookies
No-Chill Cinnamon-Sugar Cut-Out Cookies
Orange and Chocolate French Butter Cookies
Raspberry Linzer Cookies
Raspberry jam sandwiched between delicate, buttery linzer cookies spiced with citrus and cinnamon. Delicious!
Servings: 24 cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole raw hazelnuts or slivered almonds
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup raspberry jam seedless
- powdered (confectioners') sugar for dusting
Instructions
TOAST HAZELNUTS AND MAKE HAZELNUT “FLOUR”
- Spread hazelnuts in an even layer onto an ungreased sheet pan and toast in a 325 degree oven until fragrant and their papery skin begins to crack. This will take between 10-20 minutes total, depending on the size of your hazelnuts. Check them and give the pan a good shake after 7-10 minutes. Remove from oven or continue toasting for another 10 minutes.
- Transfer the toasted nuts to a plate.
- While still warm and working with half of the nuts at a time, rub hazelnuts with a clean tea towel to remove the skins. Don’t worry if you can’t remove all of the skins!
- In a food processor, pulse nuts until finely ground and slightly crumbly, being careful to not over-process into a paste.
MAKE LINZER COOKIE DOUGH
- Incorporate dry ingredients (all-purpose flour, cinnamon, and salt) in a bowl using a whisk. Stir in the ground hazelnuts.
- In a large bowl, beat sugar and butter until pale and fluffy with a paddle attachment of a stand mixer or an electric beater. Stir in the egg yolk, lemon/orange zest(s), vanilla extract, and the almond extract, scraping the sides of the bowl with a sturdy rubber spatula as needed.
- Gradually add flour mixture until just blended, being sure not to overwork the dough. The dough will be soft.
- Divide dough into four equal portions, wrap in parchment or plastic wrap and press into a disc shape. Place dough in refrigerator and chill for at least 1/2 hour.
ROLL OUT & BAKE LINZER COOKIES
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. These are delicate cookies and they will be much easier to transfer once baked if they are lined.
- Working with one disc at a time, roll out linzer dough on a generously-floured surface to a thickness between 1/4 inch and 1/8th of an inch. I like to aim for the thinner side, since you’ll be sandwiching them and they will get quite thick. You can also place the dough between two sheets of wax paper if you prefer to use less flour.
- Stamp the dough with the large cookie cutter.
- Stamp half of the large cookies with a little window with the small cutter. Ideally, you’ll have half large cookie bases and half window tops to assemble them into the linzer sandwich cookies.
- Repeat with the remaining discs and re-roll all scraps to use up all the dough.
- Arrange cut-out cookies, including tops, bottoms and small scrap cut outs on the lined cookie sheets, spacing them about an inch apart.
- Bake cookies for 10-13 minutes, until just starting to brown around the edges and firm to the touch.
- Using a thin spatula, remove cookies from cookie sheet and cool completely on cooling rack before assembling.
ASSEMBLE COOKIES
- Arrange all top “window” cookies on a cookie sheet or cooling rack and dust with powdered sugar.
- Spread about 1 teaspoon of raspberry jam onto each cookie bottom, leaving a little border around the edges.
- Place one “window” cookie on top and press gently.