❄️😍🎁 Raspberry Linzer Cookies are the ultimate sandwich cookies! A layer of raspberry jam is tucked in between two buttery, nutty cookies and dusted with powdered sugar! These are great Christmas cookies that are perfect to serve at your holiday parties or to include in cookie exchanges!
Easy Christmas Linzer Cookies Recipe
Linzer cookies are a timeless holiday favorite, alongside Christmas shortbread cookies and peanut butter blossoms. These snowflake linzer cookies are a twist on the classic jam-filled sandwich cookie typically made with almond flour.
Rather than using almond flour, I used finely crushed pecans to create soft, buttery, almost crumbly cookies that are filled with jam and sandwiched together. A snowflake cutout on the top cookie showcases the raspberry jam below. In keeping with tradition, my snowflake Linzer cookies are dusted with powdered sugar.
Even if you’ve never made Linzer cookies, don’t worry. My easy, straightforward recipe with lots of details spells it all out for you. For those Linzer tart cookie pros here, feel free to scroll down all the way to the recipe card section and skip my tips, tricks, photos, and chatter.
Ingredients in Raspberry Linzer Cookies
As I mentioned above, I made these Linzer cookies without almond flour. They still have that same buttery, shortbread-esque flavor, but they require no special ingredients.
To make these Christmas Linzer cookies, which hail from Austria traditionally, you’ll need the following common fridge and pantry ingredients:
- Pecans – Most classic Linzer cookie recipes call for almond flour as well as all-purpose flour. I used pecans. Specifically, chopped pecans (love Trader Joe’s for this). Put 1 cup chopped pecans in your food processor and process until you have fine dust. Don’t over-process because you don’t want a paste that is essentially pecan butter. However, 1 cup of hopped walnuts or shelled pistachios would be a great swap for pecans. If you have a nut allergy or don’t want nuts in these cookies, unfortunately, these aren’t the cookies for you because nuts of some variety are required
- Salted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Confectioners’ sugar, plus more for dusting
- Salt
- Large egg + egg yolk
- Vanilla bean paste OR vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Raspberry jam OR jam/jelly of choice – Traditionally, Linzer tart cookies were made with black currant jam, which seems to have evolved to using raspberry jam. However, you can use whatever flavor of jam you like. As I did with my Thumbprint Cookies, you can use a mixture of jams such as raspberry, strawberry, peach, or apricot. Linzer cookie recipes tend to call for more jam more often than jelly, but really, either is fine. Another classic filling is lemon curd. If you’re a lemon dessert lover, you can also make or buy lemon curd and fill your snowflake linzer cookies with it
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Raspberry Linzer Cookies
To make snowflake linzer cookie dough, follow my easy, straightforward steps:
Step 1: Place chopped pecans in a food processor and process until you have pecan flour.
Step 2: To the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter, both sugars, and salt, and beat together on medium speed. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Step 3: Add the eggs and beat them together. Add the vanilla and beat together.
Step 4: Add the flour and pecan flour and stir to incorporate.
Step 5: Turn the dough out, shaping it into a large disk, place it in a large piece of plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Rolling Out Linzer Cookie Dough
After you’ve chilled your snowflake linzer cookie dough, you’re ready to proceed with the following steps:
Step 1: Roll out the dough to a rough ¼-inch thick rectangle.
Step 2: Using a 2 ½-inch scalloped edge cookie cutter, cut 32 cookies. Use a small snowflake cookie cutter to cut snowflakes out of the center of 16 cookies. Or, use a heart-shaped cookie cutter, and enjoy these cookies on Valentine’s Day, too!
Tip: You can use another shape cutter like a circle or heart.
Step 3: Place the cookies onto prepared baking sheets, leaving at least 1 ½ inches of space between each cookie. Bake the cookies and then allow them to cool completely.
Step 4: Bake the cookies and then allow them to cool completely.
Step 5: Once the cookies have cooled, spoon 1 ½ to 2 teaspoons of jam onto the bottom of the cookies. Place a cut-out cookie on top, sealing them together. Dust confectioners’ sugar over the tops of the cookies and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Linzer Cookies
For anyone who is excited to get ready and make these snowflake linzer cookies that are perfect Christmas cookies, here are some extra tips to help you out:
- When measuring the pecans (or almonds, walnuts, or pistachios if using), add 1 cup rough, small-chopped nuts into your food process, process them, and what you end up with is the amount of nut flour you should use. Likely is will be about 3/4 to 7/8 of a cup, but not quite 1 cup since you won’t get 1 cup of nut flour ever, from just 1 cup of nuts.
- These cookies are best baked cold, so when waiting to rotate pans through the oven, place them into the fridge to keep the cookies from spreading when baking.
- If the jam is too thick to spread easily when filling, pop it into the microwave for 15 seconds to make spreadability slightly easier.
- Use a toothpick to spread it to the points of the snowflakes once the cookies are sandwiched together, if desired.
- Do not worry about covering up the jam with powdered sugar as you’re dusting it on. The powdered sugar melts into the jam after a few minutes, revealing the snowflake shape.
- This cookie dough freezes well. Wrap it well with plastic wrap or place it in a freezer baggie and freeze it for up to 4 months. When you are ready to bake it, let it sit at room temperature for 1 hour before rolling it out.
Snowflake Linzer Cookies
Equipment
- 1 Large Food Processor
- 1 Stand Mixer Fitted with a Paddle Attachment
- 1 2 ½-Inch Scalloped Edge Cookie Cutter
- 1 Small Snowflake Cookie Cutter
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for dusting
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg + 1 yolk
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup raspberry jam, divided; or as needed (or your favorite jam or lemon curd* See Notes)
Instructions
- To the canister of a large food processor, add the pecans, and pulse a few times until the pecans have reduced to a fine powder, or pecan flour, taking care not to over-process and turn them into a paste!** (See Notes)
- Tp the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or large mixing bowl and handheld electric mixer, add the butter, sugar, confectioner's sugar, salt, and cream (beat) together on high speed for 1 minute.
- Add the eggs and continue beating for 30 seconds.
- Add the flour, pecan flour, and stir to incorporate.
- Turn the dough out into a disc-like shape, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and place it in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
- Once the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- Unwrap the dough and place it on a well floured surface like a clean countertop.
- Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a rough rectangle, about ¼-inch thick.
- Using a 2 ½-inch scalloped edge cookie cutter, cut 32 cookies. Ball up dough, re-roll it, and cut, as necessary.
- Use a small snowflake cookie cutter to cut snowflakes out of the center of 16 cookies. Tip – You can use another shaped cutter like a small circle or a heart if desired.
- Place the cookies onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving at least 1 ½-inches of space between each cookie.
- Bake for approximately 12 minutes, or until cookies are set and done (start checking at 10 minutes), taking care not to overbake them. Tip – Bake one sheet of cookies at a time, on the center rack, rotating pan once midway through baking for optimal results.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheets momentarily before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once the cookies have cooled, spoon 1 ½ to 2 teaspoons of jam onto the center of each whole cookie.
- Place a snowflake cookie on top of each of the jam-topped cookies, and lightly press together to seal. Tip – Use a toothpick to spread the jam to the points of the snowflakes if desired. Repeat the process until all cookies have been sandwiched together.
- Evenly dust the cookies with confectioners' sugar.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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