The Linzertorte a a torte, or cake, (it's really what we call a tart) made with a pastry that resembles a shortbread cookie- buttery, crumbly, and most notably made with either ground almonds or hazelnuts. I love the hazelnut flavor, but I am a serious almond fan as well. It is filled with jam: raspberry, currant, strawberry.. something RED. I like to get a jam blend of four berries: raspberry, strawberry, currant, and cherry. The signature lattice top is dusted with powdered sugar. So, with the nut factor, and the fruit factor, you cam think of this sort of as a HEALTHY dessert.
The dessert originates in Austria and Hungary but is also frequently a favorite in Switzerland and Germany as well. Growing up in Northern Illinois, the European melting pot, it was in every bakery (yes, bakeries proliferated) along with it's sister: the Linzer cookie or Linzer heart.
Here is a pretty dependable recipe from Epicurious.com
Yield: Makes 8 servings 
1 2/3 cups sliced almonds with skins (6 oz) 1/3 cup sugar 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened 1 large egg yolk 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves 3/4 cup red-currant jam (8 oz) Special equipment: a 9-inch (24-cm) round springform pan  Grind almonds with half of sugar in a food processor until powdery (be careful not to process to a paste), then transfer to a small bowl. Add butter, yolk, and remaining sugar to processor and blend, scraping down sides, until light and fluffy. Add ground almonds, flour, zest, salt, cinnamon, and cloves and pulse, scraping down sides if necessary, until a dough forms. (Dough will be sticky.) Divide dough into 1 one-third portion and 1 two-thirds portion and form each portion into a disk on plastic wrap. Wrap disks in plastic wrap and chill until slightly firm, about 30 minutes. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Unwrap larger disk and put in springform pan. Cover surface with plastic wrap and press dough (through plastic wrap) evenly onto bottom and 1/4 inch up side of pan. Discard plastic wrap. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes, then transfer crust in pan to a rack and cool completely, about 30 minutes. Leave oven on. Roll out remaining dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap into a 9-inch round, then transfer to a baking sheet and freeze 10 minutes. (Round will be thinner than bottom crust.) Remove top sheet of plastic and cut dough into 12 (1/2-inch-wide) strips, then freeze strips 5 minutes. Discard any remaining dough. Spread jam evenly over cooled crust, leaving a 1/4-inch border around edge, then arrange 6 strips 1 inch apart across jam, pressing ends onto edge of crust. Arrange remaining 6 strips 1 inch apart diagonally across first strips to form a lattice with diamond-shaped spaces. (Repair any broken pieces of dough by carefully pressing them together.) Trim edges of all strips flush with edge of pan. Bake until top is golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool in pan on rack 10 minutes, then remove side of pan and cool completely. Cooks' notes: • Dough can be formed into disks 1 day ahead and chilled, wrapped well in plastic wrap. • Torte keeps in an airtight container at room temperature 2 days. Cookies: These are a little more labor intensive to me, but they are so pretty.  I saw this pretty presentation on another blog called Maja's Kitchen: http://majaskitchen.wordpress.com/  You can see Maja's recipe on her blog, but there are several others, all with essentially the same ingredients. But before you choose, check the quantity. No on wants to go to a lot of trouble for 10 cookies.. A little video instruction, but this recipe uses .. pecans... uh-uh. no. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBpYc1DAuXs http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/food/cooking/best-linzer-cookies HAPPY VALENTINE's Day, whatever you choose to make. I am afraid I am taking the lazy way out and making raspberry oat bars.. |
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