Linzer Tarts

"This is a good basic recipe for linzer cookies. I suggest the following adjustments for best results: 1. refrigerate dough overnight if possible, or at least 4 hours, since it might otherwise crumble...." See more 2. Use a mixture of ground nuts (such as almonds, hazelnuts and pecans) for a more wholesome flavor. 3. When the tops are cooled, dust them with powdered sugar. Don't do it after assembling! This way the sugar doesn't cover the cut out center. 4. You must heat the rasberry jam (which means you need an entire jar because it reduces.) Simmer until thick and then spread on you cookie. This will prevent the tops from sliding off. When you heat the jam, it gets gluey, and yields a nice chewy consistency when the cookie is cooled. Very yummy! "

"Excellent recipe for authentic tasting linzer tarts. These were even better the next day when the jam softened the cookie a little bit. I forgot to add the cinnamon by mistake and they still tasted ..." See moreincredible. They are labor intensive but I had fun rolling the dough and cutting out the shapes. You just have to gingerly handle everything. The end product is worth the effort. Linzer cookies cost $1.50 each in the bakery! This recipe makes about 30 cookies and they taste BETTER than the bakery. My mother could not believe that I made them, she said they looked so professional. I can't wait to make them in heart shapes for Valentine's Day. Thank you for a true 5 star recipe!!! NOTE: I have made these fantastic cookies numerous times and the most important piece of advice I can give is after to roll your dough out onto a pieice of wax paper and place the wax paper with the impressions in the freezer for 5 minutes. THEN, remove the rounded cut out shapes. If you do it when the dough is cold, your cookies will not break. Also, I just use Smuckers squeezable raspberry preserves, you do not have to warm the preserves. Anytime you have trouble with this dough just chill it."

"Don't be afraid of this recipe... it's delicious. Here are some helpful hints (from mistakes I've made). Grind the almonds REALLY fine- otherwise the cookies will tend to crumble. Serve them the da..." See morey you make them, or the jam will seep into the cookie. They still taste delicious, but they will not look as pretty. (You can always keep them and eat them yourself). Be sure to refrigerate the dough. The longer the better. The dough is a little tricky to work with and a little sticky, but I promise it's worth it and you will get better each time you make them. I tried to make hearts, but the cookies are so flaky that it was hard to keep the hearts from cracking because there wasn't much cookie by the time I cut out the middle. Circles are definitely the way to go, but don't make the inner circle too big. These are absolutely delicious. They are as good as the ones I used to buy in the Italian bakery in Brooklyn and are now a standard recipe for Christmas in my recipe box. Thanks."