Big Cornmeal Linzer Cookie Recipe

Buttery and crisp, this linzer cookie recipe swaps almond flour for cornmeal to present traditional cut-out sandwich cookies a fragile, golden crunch. Stuffed with jam and dusted with powdered sugar, these Big Cornmeal Linzer Cookies are a festive twist on a timeless favourite.

These Big Cornmeal Linzer Cookies got here to life the way in which a few of my favourite recipes do — by chance, or quite, by omission. I used to be midway via testing a traditional linzer cookie after I realized I used to be utterly out of almond flour, the ingredient that historically offers linzers their tender, nutty crumb. However in case you’ve spent any time in my kitchen, you realize I at all times have not less than three forms of cornmeal tucked within the pantry. Dwelling within the South, cornmeal looks like a birthright – the sunny yellow type particularly, with its mild crunch and heat, golden shade. So into the dough it went, and buddies… I believe this is perhaps my favourite model but!

The cornmeal provides the loveliest texture, a buttery fringe of crunch that performs so nicely with the candy jammy middle. You possibly can fill them with no matter fruit unfold you like (although I’m a fan of raspberry jam or lemon curd) and minimize them into any measurement or form that matches your vacation cookie tins. These very cookies are making their method into The Bakehouse Texas Bakery Field this weekend, and I’m crossing all my fingers that folk love them as a lot as I do.

•  Salted butter  The spine of any good linzer cookie. Softened salted butter offers the dough richness and taste, and creates that tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture with simply the correct quantity of salt to stability sweetness.

•  Granulated sugar  Provides sweetness and construction. Sugar helps the cookies maintain their form as they bake whereas preserving the feel crisp and lightweight—precisely what we wish for sandwich cookies.

•  Egg Binds the dough collectively and provides tenderness. One egg offers the cookies simply sufficient richness with out making them cakey.

•  All-purpose flour  The sturdy base of the cookie. It supplies construction so the cut-outs bake evenly and keep robust sufficient to carry a beneficiant spoonful of jam.

•  Cornmeal  The twist! Cornmeal provides a sunny, golden shade and probably the most pleasant buttery crunch. It stands in for almond flour, giving the cookies texture with none nut taste.

•  Baking powder  A small elevate to maintain the cookies mild and crisp quite than dense. Simply sufficient to maintain them from feeling heavy.

•  Kosher salt  A pinch makes the buttery sweetness sing. With out it, the flavors fall flat.

•  Vanilla extract  Provides heat and depth—only a splash offers these easy cookies a traditional bakery aroma.

•  Strawberry, raspberry, or blackberry jam  Select the jam that makes your coronary heart leap. It brings vivid sweetness and just a little tang to stability the wealthy cookie layers.

•  Powdered sugar  A snowy, festive end that provides a contact of additional sweetness and that signature linzer cookie look.

Now let’s convey collectively this linzer cookie recipe! It’s easy: within the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or with a handheld mixer and a big mixing bowl), beat the butter and sugar collectively on medium velocity till they’re pale, fluffy, and looking out more than happy with themselves (about 3 minutes). Add the egg and vanilla and blend for a full minute extra, pausing to scrape down the bowl so nothing will get left behind. In a separate bowl, whisk collectively the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry elements to the butter combination and blend on low simply till the dough pulls collectively and begins to tug away from the edges of the bowl. It ought to really feel very mushy and just a little sandy from the cornmeal. Flip the dough out onto a frivolously floured counter, pat it gently right into a 1-inch thick disk (the thinner the disk the sooner it chills), and wrap it in plastic wrap. Let it relaxation within the fridge for not less than 3 hours (although really, in a single day is the place the magic occurs).

While you’re able to bake, seize your favourite massive spherical cutter (I like a 4-inch cutter for these big beauties) and minimize out as many rounds as you possibly can, transferring them to the ready baking sheets. Collect and re-roll any scraps becaues, no dough left behind.

For half of the cookies, use a smaller cutter (just a little circle, star, or coronary heart) to punch a window out of the middle. These will likely be your tops, they usually’ll bake only a contact sooner, so regulate them. Bake the cookies for 10–13 minutes, till the sides are frivolously golden and the facilities look set. Examine the tops across the 9-minute mark, simply to be secure. Let the whole lot cool utterly on the baking sheets earlier than you even suppose about assembling.

To assemble, spoon a tablespoon or two of your favourite jam onto every of the strong cookies. Gently press a cut-out cookie on prime to make the prettiest little sandwich. If a little bit of jam squishes out the edges (congratulations, that’s a part of the Linzer attraction). End with a bathe of powdered sugar in case you’re feeling traditional, or go away them plain and proud. Both method, they’re big, beautiful, and unimaginable to not love.

These cookies hold fantastically in an hermetic container at room temperature for as much as 3 days. You may also retailer the unfilled cookies individually and assemble them as wanted (an ideal trick for preserving them crisp throughout cookie season).

And really, it is a recipe price doubling. One way or the other the cookie tin is at all times mysteriously empty through the holidays, and these big Linzers disappear sooner than you’d suppose particularly alongside these Peanut Butter Christmas Cookies.

For those who make these cookies, I’d love to listen to how they turned out for you! Please go away a remark and a star ranking beneath as a result of your suggestions helps extra bakers discover this recipe. And when you’ve got any questions alongside the way in which, pop them within the feedback. I’m right here that can assist you bake your most scrumptious vacation cookies but.

Pleased Holidays and Pleased Baking!

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