The Perfect Bite :: Linzer Cookies

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Jess here, and suffice it to say, I do not take Valentine’s Day lightly. Today I’m dressed head-to-toe in red and pink and more than ready to get my sugar high on. No matter where you stand on this heart-filled holiday, Valentine’s Day is here and we might as well embrace it… and if you’re like me, cookies are the best way to do it. I adore these Linzers and their buttery shortbread sandwiched together with a sweet layer of jam. While they look delicate and a tad complicated, they really couldn’t be easier.

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Linzer Cookies

*adapted from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup good raspberry (or preferred fruit jam) preserves
• Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350? degrees F.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
3. Roll the dough 1/4-inch thick and cut 2 3/4-inch rounds with a plain or fluted cutter. With 1/2 of the rounds, cut a hole from the middle of each round with a heart or spade shaped cutter. Place all the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and chill for 15 minutes.
4. Bake the cookies for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature. Spread raspberry preserves on the flat side of each solid cookie. Dust the top of the cut-out cookies with confectioners’ sugar and press the flat sides together, with the raspberry preserves in the middle and the confectioners’ sugar on the top.

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