Yummy Linzer Cookies

These are a thumbprint take on classic Austrian Linzers, easier than the cut-out version but with the same warm spice and jewel-toned jam center. The dough leans on a half cup of ground almonds blended into the flour, which is what gives Linzer cookies their tender, almost crumbly bite.

A combination of vanilla and almond extract, plus a hit of cinnamon, pulls the dough into proper Linzer territory. Skip the almond extract and you have a generic shortbread. With it, you get that unmistakable Christmas-cookie-tin aroma.

The lemon zest stirred into the raspberry jam is the small-but-mighty step. It cuts through the sweetness and makes the jam taste of fresh fruit again, not just sugar. Use a microplane and zest only the yellow, not the bitter white pith.

Baking at the low 300°F (150°C) is intentional. These cookies should stay pale, the way proper Linzers do. A golden bottom is the cue to pull them, no further.

Pro Tips

• Press the indentation gently with a floured finger or the rounded end of a wooden spoon. Cracked edges are normal, just smooth them with your thumb.
• If the wells flatten during baking, press them again with the back of a small spoon as soon as the cookies come out. They are still soft enough to reshape for 30 seconds.
• Wait until cookies are fully cool before adding the jam. Warm cookies turn the jam runny and it bleeds into the dough.
• Store filled cookies in a single layer. Stacking softens the cookies as the jam absorbs into the dough.

Variations

• Swap the raspberry jam for apricot, red currant, or fig preserves.
• Use ground hazelnuts in place of half the almonds for a Linzer-Hazelnut hybrid.
• For a sandwich-style cookie, follow the note in the directions: cut rounds, remove a small center from half, and sandwich with jam after baking.