Linzer Heart Cookies (Vegan)

How cute are these guys? Linzer cookies are crunchy hazelnut sandwich biscuits, traditionally filled with raspberry jam. My husband can't get enough chocolate, so we also filled half with a hazelnut chocolate filling (Nocciolata is our preferred brand). Obviously, if you don't have a set of heart-shaped cookie cutters, these would be just as tasty in the round.

This recipe has been adapted from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook.

INGREDIENTS

Makes about 1 dozen sandwich cookies

- 1 cup (4 1/2 oz) hazelnuts, blanched

- 2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting

- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- 1/4 teaspoon salt

- 2 sticks / 1 cup / 225 grams butter, room temperature (Miyoko's preferred)

- 2/3 cup granulated sugar

- 2 tablespoons corn starch

- 2 tablespoons water

- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest

- About 1/2 cup raspberry jam, or filling of your choice

- About 1/4 cup powdered sugar (for dusting)

METHOD

1. If you were unable to find blanched hazelnuts at your market, you'll need to start off by blanching your hazelnuts. It's a bit of a faff (as they would say on GBBO), but it results in a beautiful color and texture in your cookies. Combine 2 tablespoons of baking soda with 3 cups water in a large pot and bring to boil. Add the hazelnuts and boil for about 3 minutes. Keep an eye on things to make sure the water doesn't boil over. The water will turn black and look super gross. At this point, remove one hazelnut and run under cool water, rubbing with your fingers. If the skin comes off easily, the hazelnuts are ready. If it doesn't, give them a minute or two more. Drain all the hazelnuts into a colander and rinse with cool water. Remove all skins, then blot dry and toast in an oven at 375 F for 10 - 15 minutes, until they are dry and smell nice and nutty.

2. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Pulse hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground, then whisk hazelnuts into the flour mixture.

3. Whisk cornstarch and water together in a small bowl. Cream together butter and sugar in a large bowl (or stand mixer with paddle attachment) until light and fluffy. Add the cornstarch mixture, vanilla, and lemon zest and continue to beat until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Then add the flour mixture and beat on low until just combined.

4. Turn the dough out onto plastic wrap and divide in two. Shape each half into flattened disks, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight.

5. Remove one disk of dough and let stand for about 1 minute to soften slightly. Flour either your plastic wrap or a piece of parchment paper and roll out the dough until it is about 1/4" thick, dusting with flour as needed to prevent sticking. Place rolled dough on a cookie sheet and freeze for 30 minutes. Repeat with second disk.

6. Preheat oven to 325 F. Line 2 cookie sheets with silpat or parchment paper. Remove one sheet of dough from the freezer. Using your larger cutter, cut out as many hearts as you can, then use your smaller cutter to cut a heart from the center of half of them. Use a wide spatula to transfer the hearts to the cookie sheets, keeping about 1 1/2 inches between them, and return the sheet to the freezer for another 15 minutes. Repeat with second sheet of dough, and combine your scraps to reroll (chill prior to cutting).

7. Bake cookies for about 15 minutes, until the cookies are crisp and lightly golden (rotate your sheet halfway through cooking to ensure an even bake). Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely. Spread the whole hearts with filling, and dust the open hearts with powdered sugar, then sandwich those cookies! If you're not going to eat all the cookies at once, then store them in an air tight container without filling, and only add jam the day you want to serve them.

#linzercookies #linzerhearts #vegancookies #veganbaking