Baking | Toasted Walnut Linzer Cookies with Strawberry Filling … Holiday Baking Fun!

“Think what a better world it would be if we all, the whole world, had cookies and milk about three o’clock every afternoon and then lay down on our blankets for a nap.”
Robert Fulghum

Toasted Walnut Linzer Cookies with Strawberry FillingJust another manic day like many others!  One of ‘those days’ when you have enough on your plate. Then by some cruel twist of fate, you land up at Tastespotting … and immediately wish you hadn’t. That was me that day. I couldn’t take my eyes off those beautiful cookies. There was something about them, and then the name “Pecan Linzer Cookies with Cherry Filling“. They held me captivated! I was soon breaking into The Parsley Thief’s beautiful blog to get my virtual fill of them!The cookies had to be made! I had them on my mind all morning despite a PILE of work. I made sweet butter, did the laundry, chopped a  kilo fruit & nuts for fruit cake – BIG achievement. Non-traditional mincemeat sans suet made, matured briefly & baked into fruit cake. To be posted soon!}. That morning, I also tried my hand at savoury macarons for MacTweets and failed {Attempted a second time recently, with success! That post is coming too}. My feet were begging for freedom, but the heart wasn’t willing and soon I had the walnuts toasting. Time to take it slow, I decided to toast the walnuts that day, make the dough the next day & roll the cookies out whenever … but one thing led to another!

…and the holiday baking spirit isn’t that easy to shrug off. Once the walnuts cooled, I was tempted to grind them, intrigued by the procedure. Now just a step away from dough, so I proceeded to make that too. Dough to be rested in the fridge OVERNIGHT said the head, but soon the heart was rolling out cookies. Such was the temptation, and so good was the dough. It rolled well though could have been better if I had let it rest for 2 hours, but I couldn’t wait. Baked the cookies with a song in my heart! Yes, they were that attractive at The Parsley Thief’s place!

December is whirring by, now unstoppable. It’s halfway past the month, and it’s fun to see the baking frenzy that has hit the world. Twitter is abuzz atweet with who’s baking what, food blogs are bursting with fabulous holiday baking ideas. Did you see these cute Swiss Roll Christmas Cottages at Not Quite Nigella ? Missed a heartbeat when I saw them! I wish I had most of December left as there are so many delicious  ideas, but I’m GLAD I made these cookies at least!They were l♥ved by the kids,  prized apart, jam duly licked off, sugar too, and then the cookies enjoyed … gobbled up in seconds. I saved some to give to friends as they were disappearing too soon. I think the basic cookie is a great one too sans the jam filling, quite like a nutty crisp shortbread on its own. My not-so-sweet tooth preferred it that way. A dusting of sugar seemed good enough. The box now lies empty as the daughter had her sweet-toothed friend over for the day yesterday, and they finished them off, down to the last crumb! Make them, enjoy them … and gift them! They are actually my first ever sandwich cookies; pretty darned good ones. Toasted Walnut Linzer Cookies – we ♥ you! Of course there’s  a platter tucked away for Santa, and that’s where these are going!

…and they are also going to the Kitchen Corners December Cook Off where the it’s all about baking & giving cookies!

Toasted Walnut Linzer Cookies with Strawberry Filling
Adapted from The Parsley Thief
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living, February 2007
Makes about 20 sandwich cookies
2 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cups walnut halves
2 tablespoons powdered sugar {plus, more for decorating}
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter {slightly softened}
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup homemade strawberry vanilla bean conserve , melted with 1/2 tsp water {or any preserve of choice}

Method:
Begin by toasting the walnut halves, either in a dry skillet over medium heat, or in a 180C. Toast for about 5 minutes. Be careful, nuts burn quickly! Set aside to cool completely before proceeding with the recipe.
In a mixing bowl, whisk the flour & baking powder, until combined. Set aside.
Add the toasted walnuts, powdered sugar, salt & cinnamon to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the nuts are finely ground. Transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment. Cut the butter into small pieces & add to the bowl, along with the sugar. Blend until light & fluffy. Add the vanilla extract & egg, blend until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl, as necessary. Turn the mixer to low & slowly add the flour mixture, beating until just incorporated.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface & shape into a ball. Cut the dough in half & shape each half into a disc. Wrap the discs in plastic wrap & refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 190C. Roll out the dough, one disc at a time, to an 1/8″ thickness. Cut the cookies out using a 2″ scalloped edge cookie cutter & arrange them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Using mini cookie cutters, cut shapes out of the centers of half the cookies. These will be the tops. Bake for 10 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the cooking time. Let the cookies cool slightly before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
When cool, add some powdered sugar to a small sieve & tap a dusting of sugar over all the cookie tops. Spread a layer of strawberry preserves over the cookie bottoms & place the tops on.
The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
♥ Thank you for stopping by ♥

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Also find me on The Rabid Baker, The Times of India

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Deeba @ PAB

About me: I am a freelance food writer, recipe developer and photographer. Food is my passion - baking, cooking, developing recipes, making recipes healthier, using fresh seasonal produce and local products, keeping a check on my carbon footprint and being a responsible foodie! I enjoy food styling, food photography, recipe development and product reviews. I express this through my food photographs which I style and the recipes I blog. My strength lies in 'Doing Food From Scratch'; it must taste as good as it looks, and be healthy too. Baking in India, often my biggest challenge is the non-availability of baking ingredients, and this has now become a platform to get creative on. I enjoy cooking immensely as well.

39 thoughts on “Baking | Toasted Walnut Linzer Cookies with Strawberry Filling … Holiday Baking Fun!”

  5. Awesome, I am always impressed with the dogged determination with which you take on your baking projects. Given all the chill time, rest time, soaking time required for most Xmas projects, I, on the other hand, seem to just enjoy eating everyone else’s cookies, vicariously, through the web 😉

    Reply

  6. Deeba your enthusiasm for baking is marvelous. Your energy inspires me to try new baking recipes in my kitchen. The pictures are just breath taking. Who can refuse to bake after seeing your lovely posts.

    Reply

  11. Hey Deeba,
    these cookies are so perfect..I ve been following your blog for quite sometime and should say that I admire your passion for baking and determination for perfection.
    I have been wanting to bake but don’t dare to as I’m a vegetarian n almost all baking recipes have eggs. Is there an alternative for eggs? Or do the recipe hold good if we don’t use eggs?
    I’m looking forward to ur reply and would really be happy to start baking.
    Your blog is amazing and so is ur photography.

    Reply

  13. These cookies are too pretty to eat..everything is so adorable in this post of yours.You really took your inspiration to the next level. ..thats the best part about you. Infact I find your enthusiasm for baking contagious 🙂

    Reply

  16. These cookies are long to make but they are a hit in the house. I love Tastespotting and could my days looking at the pictures and wanted to bake everything. Your Linzer Cookies are delicious looking.

    Cheers,

    Hélène

    Reply

  17. i adore linzer torte and cookies based on the same principle just have to be awesome. these cookies look so pretty deeba – i’d dare not eat them.

    Reply

  18. OMG Deeba, they are the best cookies ever…made my first ever linzer cookies twice last week! They are so pretty and have this lovely flavor with or without the filling, don’t they? I made mine with almonds and loads of orange zest and I tell you, could have eaten the dough, it smelled heavenly! Will definitely try your walnut version.Isn’t this the best time to bake? I’ve gone sorta on a baking frenzy and a new recipe everyday! Good times and cheers!

    Reply

  22. They look suitably dreamy for an afternoon on the sofa and a pot of Earl Grey besides. Congrats on winning the blog award! Happy Holidays to you and yours. Joanna

    Reply

  27. Oh yeah, these would not last more than a few hours around us and our friends. Yours look perfect. Linzers are always pretty though. It must be the cut out shape and the powdered sugar.

    Reply

  30. Cookies, milk and a nap could indeed make the world a better place 🙂 I love your cookies, the recipe and the pictures. You are one of the greatest bakers I’ve met online.

    Cheers and have a great holiday!

    Reply

    1. You are sweet Ben. I still remember you as one of the first foodie bloggers I met! And these days, when the garden is bursting with chrysanthemums, I often think of you & your Mum! Happy Holidays amigo!

      Reply

  32. I want this pretty linzer cookies too! I’ve never made them but I knowwww they’re delicious, like these 😀 x

    Reply

  35. Deeba, these are gorgeous! I love them, love the cutouts! I’ve made Linzer Heart cookies but always for Valentine’s Day. Now I see how Christmassy they are. I love the snowman with his heart on his chest (or tummy?). Beautiful, and I can just imagine the kids gobbling these up.

    So sorry about your macs! I made macs again yesterday and they were perfect, the best I’ve gotten for a long, long time, so I will again send you MacFeet Luck and hope you can find the feet to dance your way through the holidays! xoxo

    Reply
  37. Pingback: Not Quite Anzacs | https://passionateaboutbaking.com/
  38. Pingback: Eggless Baked Cheesecake with a Mango Lime Sauce ... desserts for summer - Passionate About Baking

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