Linzer Tart Cookies

These Linzer Tart Cookies are a classic Austrian treat with a tender, buttery almond cookie wrapped around a bright raspberry jam center. The ground almonds give the cookies a delicate, slightly crumbly texture, while cinnamon adds just enough warmth without competing with the fruit. A snowy layer of confectioners’ sugar makes the little jam windows especially pretty.

This is the kind of collected recipe I keep for holidays and cookie trays because it looks impressive without requiring complicated decorating. The dough does need a good chill before rolling, but that extra time helps the cutouts hold their shape and makes assembly much easier. I also appreciate that you can switch the raspberry jam for strawberry or red currant when that’s what you have in the pantry. The original recipe yields 12 sandwich cookies and uses a straightforward butter-and-almond dough.

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Ingredients

1 ¼ cups unsalted butter, softened

⅔ cup granulated sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 ¾ cups ground almonds

⅛ tsp ground cinnamon

5 tbsp raspberry jam, plus more as needed

¼ cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more as needed for dusting

Instructions

1. Cream the butter and sugar. Beat the softened butter and granulated sugar with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes, until pale, light, and fluffy.
2. Make the dough. Beat in ½ cup of the flour. Add the ground almonds and cinnamon, then mix well. Gradually add the remaining flour, about ½ cup at a time, until a firm, cohesive dough forms.
3. Chill. Divide the dough into two equal portions and shape each into a flat disk. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for 1 hour.
4. Prepare the oven. Preheat the oven to 165°C / 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
5. Roll and cut. Working with one disk at a time, roll the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to about ⅛-inch thick. Cut approximately 24 rounds using a 2 ½-inch round cookie cutter, rerolling the scraps as necessary.
6. Make the tops. Arrange the rounds about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Cut a ½-inch opening from the center of 12 rounds, leaving the other 12 whole. Chill the shaped cookies briefly if the dough has become soft.
7. Bake. Bake at 165°C / 325°F for 10-15 minutes, just until the edges develop a light golden color.
8. Cool. Transfer the cookies carefully to a wire rack and let them cool completely, about 20 minutes.
9. Fill. Spread a thin layer of raspberry jam over the flat side of each whole cookie. Gently place a cutout cookie on top to create 12 sandwiches.
10. Finish. Dust the assembled cookies with confectioners’ sugar. Add a small dab of raspberry jam inside each center opening for a polished finish.

Cooking Notes

Keep the dough cold while rolling and cutting. Soft butter dough can spread in the oven and blur the clean edges of the cookies.

Roll both batches to roughly the same ⅛-inch thickness so the tops and bottoms bake at the same rate.

Use thick raspberry jam rather than a loose or watery preserve. Strawberry and red currant jam are excellent substitutes.

Watch the cookies closely near the end of baking. Linzer cookies should remain relatively pale with only lightly golden edges; overbaking can make their delicate texture dry.

For cleaner presentation, you can dust the cutout tops with confectioners’ sugar before placing them over the jam-covered bottoms.

Nutrition

Yields: 12 sandwich cookies

Serving Size: 1 Linzer sandwich cookie

The butter, ground almonds, flour, sugar, jam, and confectioners’ sugar account for nearly all of the recipe’s energy. Because baking primarily removes moisture rather than significant amounts of fat or carbohydrate, the finished cookies remain calorie-dense relative to their size. The supplied nutrition information reports 442 calories per cookie, which is consistent with a rich butter-and-almond sandwich cookie of this yield.

Estimated Nutrition per Serving

• Calories: 442 kcal
• Fat: 30.0 g
• Carb: 40.0 g
• Protein: 7.0 g

Recipe Science

Linzer cookies are built around a high-fat, nut-enriched short dough. Butter limits extensive gluten development, while ground almonds contribute additional fat and protein. The result is a tender, relatively fragile cookie rather than a chewy one. Chilling the dough for about an hour firms the butter, making the dough easier to roll and helping the cut shapes retain their definition during baking.

The relatively low 165°C / 325°F baking temperature allows the cookies to bake through while developing only modest browning. Raspberry jam supplies acidity, sweetness, and moisture that contrast with the rich almond layers. Resting and cooling the cookies before assembly reduces breakage, while a thick preserve helps prevent the filling from running out of the sandwiches.

These cookies are suitable for advance preparation. Unfilled baked cookies can be stored in an airtight container and assembled closer to serving for the crispest texture. Raspberry, strawberry, apricot, or red currant preserves can be substituted according to preference.

Dietary Notes & Health Alerts: At 30 g total fat per cookie and with a butter-rich formula, saturated fat is likely to exceed 20% of the FDA Daily Value of 20 g, qualifying as high. The supplied nutrition lists 13 g saturated fat, or approximately 65% of the Daily Value. Anyone limiting saturated fat should consider a smaller portion rather than substantially altering the butter, which is structurally important to this particular cookie. Sodium is exceptionally low at the reported 3 mg per serving. Added sugar cannot be determined precisely from the supplied nutrition facts because the listed 20 g represents total sugars rather than added sugars.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Beautiful Without Fancy Decorating: The jam-filled centers and confectioners’ sugar create an elegant bakery-style cookie with simple techniques.
• Tender Almond Texture: Ground almonds and butter produce the delicate, rich crumb that distinguishes traditional Linzer cookies.
• Sweet-Tart Center: Raspberry jam cuts through the richness of the cookie with concentrated berry flavor.
• Perfect for Special Occasions: These pretty sandwich cookies fit naturally on Christmas platters, holiday cookie boxes, and dessert trays.
• Easy to Customize: Strawberry or red currant jam can replace raspberry without changing the basic method.

FAQ

• Can I make Linzer cookie dough ahead of time? Yes. Wrap the dough disks tightly and refrigerate them in advance. Let very firm dough sit briefly at room temperature until it is pliable enough to roll without cracking.
• Why is my Linzer dough breaking when I roll it? It may be too cold. Give it a few minutes at room temperature, then roll gently on a lightly floured surface.
• Why did my cookies spread? The dough was probably too warm. Refrigerate the cut cookies before baking whenever they become noticeably soft during rolling.
• What jam works best? A thick raspberry preserve is traditional and easy to work with. Strawberry and red currant are also excellent choices.
• Can I freeze the cookies? The baked, unfilled cookies freeze especially well. Freeze them in an airtight container with parchment between the layers, thaw completely, then fill and decorate before serving.

Conclusion

These Raspberry Linzer Tart Cookies take a little more care than an everyday drop cookie, but that tender almond crumb and jewel-like raspberry center make the effort worthwhile. Remember, baking is a journey, and your favorite jam or cookie shape is an easy way to make this collected classic your own.

Which jam would you tuck inside yours; raspberry, strawberry, red currant, or something completely different?

Happy baking, from my kitchen to yours!