Sparkling Linzer Cookies
Active Time: 1 hr
Total Time: 2 hrs 5 mins
Yield: 40 cookies
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 1/2 tsp. vanilla bean paste
1/2 tsp. almond extract
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
Red, green, gold, and silver sparkling sugars
1/2 cup lemon curd (from 1 [11-oz.] jar)
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
Lemon yellow food coloring gel (optional)
1/2 cup seedless strawberry jam (from 1 [18-oz.] jar)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°F. Line 4 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Beat powdered sugar, butter, and granulated sugar with a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on low speed just until combined, about 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium-low; beat until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides as needed. Beat in egg, vanilla bean paste, and almond extract until combined, 15 to 30 seconds.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl until combined. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture and beat just until dough comes together, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides as needed.
Divide the dough in half; shape each half into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days before using. Roll half of the dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper to 1/8-inch thickness.
Remove the top piece of parchment paper from the dough. Cut dough using a lightly floured 2-inch fluted round cutter; use 1-inch fluted star, tree, and/or candy cane cookie cutters to cut out centers of half of the dough rounds. Do not remove scraps. Transfer cut dough on parchment paper to a baking sheet; chill in the freezer until firm, about 5 minutes. Place cut dough shapes 3/4 inch apart on prepared baking sheets. Remove 1-inch cutout shapes. Sprinkle cutout dough circles with sparkling sugars as desired. Reroll, cut, and chill dough scraps (including cutout shapes) as needed. Repeat the process with the remaining dough half.
Bake in preheated oven, 1 baking sheet at a time, until edges are set, 7 to 9 minutes. Let cool on baking sheets for 3 minutes; transfer cookies to a wire rack, and let cool completely, 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Whisk together lemon curd and cardamom in a bowl until combined; stir in yellow food coloring gel (if using), adding more until desired color is reached. Whisk strawberry jam in a separate bowl until smooth. Spread lemon curd mixture over half of uncut cookies. Spread strawberry jam over remaining uncut cookies.
Place cutout cookies on top of curd- or jam-covered cookies, pressing gently to adhere. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Recipe courtesy of Southern Living.com
