Well, we are now full swing into the Christmas Holidays. When my children were growing up I was kept busy day and night baking up all sorts of treats for the upcoming celebrations. Cookies for the most part with the odd cake and tart thrown in for good measure. I also use to make Cookie Trays as gifts for family and friends. Everyone lives so far apart now and there are only two of us at home, so I no longer do the baking that I used to do, but I thought it would be fun today to put together a compendium of all of my tried and true Christmas Favourites! You still have plenty of time to bake them. You can buy inexpensive cookie trays/platters at the pound/dollar shop which are perfect for presentation. All can be baked and then frozen, ready to pop onto a tray or in a basket on the day you want to gift them.
Holiday Linzer Cookies always go down a real treat. These ones are special, with a buttery nutty and lightly spiced dough and delicious raspberry jam filling, they never fail to delight!
Yield: 2 dozen filled cookies
Linzer Cookies
prep time: 2 hour and 20 minscook time: 15 minstotal time: 2 hours and 35 mins
The quintessential Christmas Cookie. Tender sweet cookies filled with tart raspberry jam. Delicious!!
ingredients:
115g (2/3 cup) hazelnuts)
100g (1/2 cup packed) soft light brown sugar
340g (2 1/2 cups) sifted plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
225g (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 large free range egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
12 ounces raspberry jam, sieved
caster sugar for dusting (very fine granulated sugar)
Instructions:
100g (1/2 cup packed) soft light brown sugar
340g (2 1/2 cups) sifted plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
225g (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 large free range egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
12 ounces raspberry jam, sieved
caster sugar for dusting (very fine granulated sugar)
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180*C/ 350*F/ gas mark 4. Place the hazelnuts
into a shallow baking pan and bake for about 6 minutes until the skins
are beginning to loosen and the nuts are fragrant. Turn off the oven.
Dump the hot nuts into a tea towel and rub with the towel to loosen as
much of the skins as possible. Discard any skins. Place half the
brown sugar and the nuts into a food processor. Process until the nuts
are finely ground.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
Cream
together the butter and remaining brown sugar until pale and fluffy.
Add the nut mixture and beat until well combined. Beat in the egg and
the vanilla. Work in the flour mixture, just until combined. Divide
the dough in half, shaping each half into a round flat disc. Wrap in
cling film and chill until firm, about 2 hours.
Heat the oven
again to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark4. Roll out 1 disc of the dough to 1/8
inch thickness between two sheets of cling film. Cut out as many
cookies as you can with a 2 1/4 inch fluted round cookie cutter. Repeat
until all the dough has been cut out/ Using a smaller shaped cutter,
cut shapes out of the centre of half of the rounds. Place one inch
apart on ungreased baking sheets. Dust the top halves with some caster
sugar . (these are the ones with the centre cut out.) Bake for 10 to 15
minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to
cool completely before proceeding. Repeat until all the dough has been
used up, only re rolling the scraps once. Discard any scraps after that.
Spread
about 1 teaspoon of jam on the solid halves of the baked cookies. Top
with the fat side of a windowed cookie. Repeat until all cookies are
put together. Store between sheets of parchment paper in a tightly
covered tin.
into a shallow baking pan and bake for about 6 minutes until the skins
are beginning to loosen and the nuts are fragrant. Turn off the oven.
Dump the hot nuts into a tea towel and rub with the towel to loosen as
much of the skins as possible. Discard any skins. Place half the
brown sugar and the nuts into a food processor. Process until the nuts
are finely ground.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
Cream
together the butter and remaining brown sugar until pale and fluffy.
Add the nut mixture and beat until well combined. Beat in the egg and
the vanilla. Work in the flour mixture, just until combined. Divide
the dough in half, shaping each half into a round flat disc. Wrap in
cling film and chill until firm, about 2 hours.
Heat the oven
again to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark4. Roll out 1 disc of the dough to 1/8
inch thickness between two sheets of cling film. Cut out as many
cookies as you can with a 2 1/4 inch fluted round cookie cutter. Repeat
until all the dough has been cut out/ Using a smaller shaped cutter,
cut shapes out of the centre of half of the rounds. Place one inch
apart on ungreased baking sheets. Dust the top halves with some caster
sugar . (these are the ones with the centre cut out.) Bake for 10 to 15
minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to
cool completely before proceeding. Repeat until all the dough has been
used up, only re rolling the scraps once. Discard any scraps after that.
Spread
about 1 teaspoon of jam on the solid halves of the baked cookies. Top
with the fat side of a windowed cookie. Repeat until all cookies are
put together. Store between sheets of parchment paper in a tightly
covered tin.
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