I have no idea how it is possible that in all of my years of baking, this is my first time making linzer cookies. For quite some time I have been fascinated by them. They just look so neat and pretty. Tidy little shapes with that gorgeous pop of color from the jam showing through and a dusting of powdered sugar – perfection! Maybe I was afraid that the taste wouldn’t live up to my expectations or maybe I was mildly intimidated by the complexity of the cookie cutters. Maybe a little of both.
Now that I have finally tried them I can say confirm that they were even more delicious than I could have hoped for. The cutters were very easy to use. (Side note – you don’t actually have to have the fancy cutters to make these. Just use a scalloped edge cutter for the top and bottom shapes and then use a separate mini cutter to make the center shape.) The cookie is just barely sweet, slightly crumbly but tender with a subtle nut flavor. And of course, who doesn’t love jam? Despite their gorgeous look they are pretty quick to make. They will look so lovely as part of a holiday spread or cookie exchange. Use whatever flavor of jam you prefer but make sure it is good quality. We used apricot and raspberry, but next time I would also love to try them with my blueberry lavender jam. Mmm, the possibilities.