Seeing as it was NOT going to be 40°C today, I decided it was high time that I got some baking happening, kind of funny in that for both running and baking, I miss it if I go too long without getting a fix ... I got a cookie cutter set (among other fun things that should see the spotlight here, as well as some non-food stuff) from B & C, Em and M, and Jul for my birthday, and I decided that I wanted to find something to give them a test run, even if it was going to be fiddly, because cookie dough can always wait if other stuff decided it needed attention instead.
So while X was having his breakfast, I went looking for things that might make use of what was in the magical (to X) baking cupboard, and remembered that at some point I'd thought of making Linzer cookies, except that wasn't what the hazelnut meal was purchased for. Actually, I couldn't tell you what the hazelnut meal was originally destined for because it was in the haze that was December that it was bought and I had cookies everywhere. X also discovered the joys of taste-testing the cookie dough before it had some time in the fridge prior to rolling, cutting, and baking, and he also woke up from his nap at the right time to get to sample some of the baked cut-out shapes.
Linzer Cookies
Adapted from recipe at epicurious.com
Flour up your hands, then form the dough into two equal-sized disks, flattened out a fair bit. Chill these disks in the fridge for at least 2 hours, so that they are quite firm.
When you're ready to start with the cookie cutter action, preheat oven to 180°C.
Take out one of the dough disks, unwrap it, and roll it out between two sheets of baking paper, until the dough is about 3mm thick. Put the sheet of dough in the fridge (for about 15-20 minutes), or even the freezer (for about 5-10 minutes), if it's getting hard to work with. Cut out your cookie bases, and re-roll the scraps ****, then cut out cookies with cutouts (if you have them) to match. If you have cutout shapes, you can either bake them, or re-roll them as part of the scraps.
Bake for 10-15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool.
Once the cookies are cool, sandwich the bases and tops with some jam (about a teaspoonful or so).
* Original recipe called for toasting the hazelnuts yourself, and then using the food processor to grind the hazelnuts with some sugar until finely ground. I had hazelnut meal, not whole hazelnuts, so that's how I went.
** Original recipe called for light brown sugar, but if you've been around here long enough you know about me and the dark brown sugar *grin*
*** I used self-raising flour in place of plain flour + 1/2 tspn salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder.
**** Recipe says only re-roll the scraps once, but I can't bring myself to chuck out otherwise tasty cookie dough, so I re-rolled 5 or 6 times... or until X woke up and I had to hurry things up so I just baked the last one as a hand-formed squished blob. Doing this made about .... 30 pairs, and lots of cut-out shapes which X enjoyed snacking upon.
Adapted from recipe at epicurious.com
- 85g (2/3 cup) hazelnut meal *
- 100g (1/2 cup) dark brown sugar **
- 315g (2 1/2 cup) self-raising flour ***
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 225g unsalted butter, softened
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- some raspberry jam
Flour up your hands, then form the dough into two equal-sized disks, flattened out a fair bit. Chill these disks in the fridge for at least 2 hours, so that they are quite firm.
When you're ready to start with the cookie cutter action, preheat oven to 180°C.
Take out one of the dough disks, unwrap it, and roll it out between two sheets of baking paper, until the dough is about 3mm thick. Put the sheet of dough in the fridge (for about 15-20 minutes), or even the freezer (for about 5-10 minutes), if it's getting hard to work with. Cut out your cookie bases, and re-roll the scraps ****, then cut out cookies with cutouts (if you have them) to match. If you have cutout shapes, you can either bake them, or re-roll them as part of the scraps.
Bake for 10-15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool.
Once the cookies are cool, sandwich the bases and tops with some jam (about a teaspoonful or so).
* Original recipe called for toasting the hazelnuts yourself, and then using the food processor to grind the hazelnuts with some sugar until finely ground. I had hazelnut meal, not whole hazelnuts, so that's how I went.
** Original recipe called for light brown sugar, but if you've been around here long enough you know about me and the dark brown sugar *grin*
*** I used self-raising flour in place of plain flour + 1/2 tspn salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder.
**** Recipe says only re-roll the scraps once, but I can't bring myself to chuck out otherwise tasty cookie dough, so I re-rolled 5 or 6 times... or until X woke up and I had to hurry things up so I just baked the last one as a hand-formed squished blob. Doing this made about .... 30 pairs, and lots of cut-out shapes which X enjoyed snacking upon.
Wow, so pretty! Excellent photos :)
Glad you put the cookie cutters to the test. I think I like some of the centre shapes better than others, but they look fantastic, almost like something you'd find in a fancy patisserie.
Recipe sounds really yummy, and not too difficult. The freezing the dough thing is finicky but often quite worthwhile for a tasty result. Like you, I keep re-rolling as much as I can so only a little bit goes to waste...
Yay!