Classic Gluten Free Linzer Cookies!
This is a classic cookie and for good reason. You start with a simple shortbread that isn't overly sweet. Fill it with any jam/fruit preserve of your choice & them top with a dusting of powdered sugar. Feel free to use a few different jam options to create a fun variety of color and flavor. For best results I recommend picking up a liner cookie cutter!
Better Batter Gluten Free Orginal Blend
This flour blend continues to amaze me. It can do so many things better than most other blends that I have tried. I cant live without for my bread recipes & have found it works exceptionally well in cookies too!
Lately I have been ordering it from the Better Batter website directly. When they sell out- they tend to restock pretty quickly. Check back within a day or two if they are sold out when you look. I buy it in bulk now (Up to 40 lbs at a time) as I cant risk running out. I use it in too many recipes that we love.
What if you cant get your hands on it? This may be the case if you live outside the US. My friend Nichole from Gluten Free on a Shoestring has figured out a mock recipe for better batter. Her version should work great in this recipe! The owner (Naomi) of better batter has confirmed that the mix is similar to the official version.
King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour - will also work perfectly in this recipe! This one is easier to find and is sold on amazon and in most grocery stores!
Butter
You can make these cookies with regular salted butter If dairy isn’t a concern for you. IF you are making them dairy free like I did please use Earth Balance Butter Sticks. You may try other brands but know that there is a lot of variety brand to brand and they don’t all perform the same. Earth balance is the best when it comes to mimicking how real butter works.
Organic Cane Sugar
Believe it or not there is a difference between regular cane sugar and organic. Organic tends to be a bit courser whereas regular is ground super fine. The finer the sugar the more the cookies spread. I tend to always work with organic and so therefore my recipes are perfected to spread the right amount using that. If you swap it out for regular your cookies may not turn out the same.
In the directions I wrote how to make the cookies with a food processor which is my preferred method as it allows me to use cold butter straight out of the fridge and then work with the dough immediately. But- I know that not everyone owns a larger food processor (mine is a 14 cup). So I wanted to provide alternate directions as well.
A stand mixer would be the next best option- but in that case you will want to use slightly softened butter instead and the dough will need to be chilled for about an hour. I suggest creaming the butter, sugar and egg- and then adding all the remaining ingredients and mixing until the dough comes together.
The 3rd option is to cream slightly softened butter with a hand mixer and then add in the remaining ingredients until the dough comes together. In this case you’ll also want to chill the dough for about an hour.
Gluten Free Linzer Cookies
Ingredients
- 347 grams ( about 2 cups) Better Batter Gluten Free Flour Original Blend OR King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour.
- 116 grams (about 1 cup) Blanched Almond Flour
- 3/4 Tsp Salt
- 1 Cup Cold Salted Butter or Earth Balance Buttery Sticks for Dairy Free- cut into tbsp sized pieces.
- 168 grams (about 2/3 cup) Organic Cane Sugar
- 2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/2 Tsp Almond Extract
- 1 Large Egg
- 1/2-1 cup fruit preserves of choice.
- Powdered sugar for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment and set aside.
- Make the dough: Add to the food processor all of the cookie dough ingredients. Turn on and mix until a smooth dough forms.
- Place a large sheet of parchment on the counter and sprinkle liberally with better batter or King Arthur flour. This dough doesn't seem like it will stick- but it does if you don't use enough flour when rolling it out. Roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thick. (a second sheet of parchment can be used on top to roll if it sticks at all- as well as adding a sprinkle of more flour to the top of the dough.
- Using a linzer cookie cutter- cut out about 66 cookies- half should be solid. The other half should have the cut out shape in the center.
- Carefully place on the prepared cookie sheets and bake one tray at a time on the middle rack for 10-11 minutes. Rotate the tray once in the middle of baking. Keep a close eye on them as the thickness of the cookies can make the baking time required vary. Thinner pieces on the edges of the pan could finish in closer to 8-9 minutes. They should be slightly golden brown around the bottom edges when done. Allow them to cool completely before removing them from the pan.
- Place 1/2 cup or so of jam or fruit preserves of choice into a sandwich baggie and cut a tiny sliver off one of the corners. (The easiest way to do this is to place the baggie over an empty cup and spoon the jam in- then twist it up and cut the tip at the end.) Pipe 1-2 tsp's of jam/preserves over the solid cookies. Top them with a second cookie to form a sandwich with a cut design.
- Sprinkle them with powdered sugar. Store at room temperature for a few days (they will soften if they sit out) or freeze them for another day.
Notes
In the direction above I wrote how to make the cookies with a food processor which is my preferred method as it allows me to use cold butter straight out of the fridge and then work with the dough immediately. But- I know that not everyone owns a larger food processor (mine is a 14 cup). So I wanted to provide alternate directions as well.
A stand mixer would be the next best option- but in that case you will want to use slightly softened butter instead and the dough will need to be chilled for about an hour. I suggest creaming the butter, sugar and egg- and then adding all the remaining ingredients and mixing until the dough comes together.