Linzer Cookies

Recently I recalled a memory of being a child  and going into my grandmother’s pantry. She always had good little snacks but there was one thing that I always looked for. Inside were these little sandwich cookies with raspberry jam in the center. These weren’t traditional Linzer cookies. They were sprinkled with granulated sugar and I believe they had a bit of cream under that jam as well but they tasted like heaven. I can remember their taste on my tongue right now as if it were yesterday.

With that memory in mind,  I decided I wanted to make Linzer cookies. Linz is the third largest city in Austria and is where the Lindzertorte originated. (*Fun Fact: Austria is also where Pez orginated! Who doesn’t like Pez?) Lindzertorte is made from a buttery dough with hints of almond, lemon zest, cinnamon and it’s filled with jam. Lindzer cookies are made from the same dough with jam sandwiched between two cookies. Each cookie has a cutout in the top, known as “Lindzer eyes” that allows you a little window to allow the jam to peek through. That’s my favorite part. Then they’re dusted with powdered sugar. So pretty!

These cookies were easy to make and look so lovely. They’ll be sure to impress guests or just make you happy as you eat the grown-up version of a cookie you enjoyed as a child.

*What’s your favorite kind of cookie?

Enjoy!

~K

Linzer Cookies Adapted from King Arthur Flour

Makes about 5 dozen filled cookies

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 cup confectioners’ sugar plus more for dusting

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Zest of 1 lemon

1 cup almond flour

2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 large egg

1 cup jam (I used raspberry, cherry and apricot)

– Beat together the butter, sugars, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and flavor.

– Mix in the lemon zest, almond flour, all-purpose flour, and egg.

– Divide the dough in half. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

– Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or SilPat.

– Roll the dough 1/8″ thick. Cut the dough into desired shape for bottoms. For tops cut into same shape and cut out desired shape in the middle using a smaller cookie cutter. Or cookies can be cut using a Linzer cookie cutter.

– Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheet.

– Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned on the edges. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool. Repeat with all remaining dough.

To Assemble:

 – Stir the jam until smooth.

– Lightly dust the cookies with cutout designs with confectioners’ sugar.

– Spread the solid cookies with a teaspoon of jam.

– Place a cutout cookie on top of each filled cookie. Allow the cookies to stand at room temperature for a few hours for the jam to set.

– Enjoy!

Dulce de Leche Brownies

A while back, I fell in love with a brownie. Oh yes, it was double chocolatey heaven and really just about the best brownie recipe I’ve ever made. I’m here to kick it up a notch. Last week I was telling you about the easiest dulce de leche EVER. Well that dulce de leche was awesome with apples and quite frankly, it rocked eating it right out of the can. Oh yes, I did. But it was destined for something more, it was destined for greatness and here it is.

These brownies are incredible. The deep chocolate flavor is only made more decadent by the addition of espresso powder and then I dolloped and swirled dulce de leche into the batter. Heaven. Pure heaven. The caramel and chocolate co-mingle into brownie perfection. This was even better than eating it straight out of the can.

*What’s your favorite thing to add to brownies or do you just like them straight up?

Enjoy!

~K

Dulce de Leche Brownies Adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

One recipe dulce de leche (you won’t need even half of it but I’m sure you’ll find another use for the leftover)

1 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

2 Tbsp dark unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Valrhona)

11 oz high-quality dark chocolate (60-72% cacao), coarsely chopped

1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 tsp instant espresso powder

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar

1/2 c. firmly packed light brown sugar

5 large eggs, at room temperature

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

– Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter the sides and bottom of a 9×13-inch glass or light-colored metal baking pan.

– In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt and cocoa powder together.

– Put the chopped chocolate, butter and instant espresso powder in a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth.

– Turn off the heat, but keep the bowl over the water and add the sugar. Whisk until completely combined, then remove the bowl from the pan. The mixture should be room temperature.

– Add 3 eggs to the chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Add the remaining eggs and whisk until combined. Add the vanilla and stir until combined. Do not overbeat the batter at this stage or your brownies will be cakey.

– Sprinkle the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture. Using a rubber spatula (do not whisk), fold the flour mixture gently into the chocolate until just a bit of the flour mixture is visible. Do not over mix.

– Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Dollop with dulce de leche and swirl with the tip of a knife.

– Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs sticking to it. Let the brownies cool completely, then cut into squares.

– Enjoy!

Slow-Cooker Dulce de Leche

Way back in March, I had the pleasure of discovering the fabulous blog Life and Kitchen through my participation in the Secret Recipe Club. Lindsay made it incredibly hard to choose just one recipe to make that month. I’ve now become a regular reader of her blog and thought I would share with you one of our latest faves from her site.

HB is a huge dulce de leche fan. She has a special relationship with Haagen-Daz because of that love… their dulce de leche flavor is her favorite. So when I saw a recipe for dulce de leche on Lindsay’s site I absolutely needed to give it a go.

Check this out… easiest recipe ever! I kid you not! It has one ingredient. It doesn’t get any easier than that. Oh wait, yes it does. You throw that one ingredient into a slow cooker and do no work at all. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch. SO easy. The one ingredient is a can of sweetened condensed milk which makes perfect sense considering that dulce de leche is simply sweetened milk that has been cooked slowly, until it’s thickened and caramelized.

All you do is take that unopened can of sweetened condensed milk and remove the label. Then you simply wrap it in foil, put it in your slow cooker, cover completely with water and turn on low for 7-9 hours. That’s it! I cooked mine for 8 hours. The result is a lovely, dark, caramel perfect for dipping fruit or drizzling over ice cream among other things. Oh, but one word of warning… open this can slowly and carefully. As I anxiously opened my can of dulce de leche, it violently splattered out of the can and all over the wall. Funny but could be dangerous if the hot caramel had splattered on me. On another note, my wheels are already turning for sweet treats that include dulce de leche since this is so easy to make!

*What’s your favorite thing to make in your slow cooker?

Enjoy!

~K

You can find Lindsay’s post HERE.

Thyme Goat Cheese Tart with Fresh Berries

If you’ve been one of my beloved readers for any length of time, you know it’s no secret… I love goat cheese! I’m truly, deeply, madly in love with goat cheese. I love the creamy, tangy flavor that it lends to dishes. Like so many other cheeses, it’s lovely when paired with fruit.

This tart is the kind of tart that you can eat as a meal. Blackberries, raspberries, goat cheese and thyme, finished off with a drizzle of honey. This is not dessert, this is dinner. It’s far more savory than sweet. Also, this tart makes a perfect appetizer.

This recipe is easy, straight forward and there’s nothing fancy about it. Simple, fresh ingredients come together and just shine in this lovely tart. The tartness of the berries combine with the smooth, creamy goat cheese while the honey lends just a hint of sweetness which equals utter perfection. Not to mention, it’s just gorgeous without even trying.

*Are you a cheese-lover like me? What’s your favorite kind?

Enjoy!

~K

One Year Ago: August Pie

Thyme Goat Cheese Tart with Fresh Berries

Filling:

5 ounces high-quality goat cheese, at room temperature

3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme, plus addition thyme leaves for garnish

2 teaspoons minced lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons honey

1 cup raspberries

1 cup blackberries

Crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour

pinch of salt

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons, at room temperature (plus more for buttering tart pan)

3 ounces cream cheese, cut into tablespoons, at room temperature

– Combine flour and salt in a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse to combine. Add butter and cream cheese and pulse until the mixture begins to come together. Shape the dough into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours.

– Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F.

– Butter a 10″ tart pan with removable bottom. Using fingers, press dough firmly and evenly up sides of the pan to make a pastry shell. Freeze 5 minutes.

– Mash goat cheese and cream cheese together in a medium bowl until smooth. Add egg, egg yolk, minced thyme, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Whisk until combined. Pour the filling into the chilled pastry shell.

– Bake tart until crust is golden brown and filling is puffed, about 25 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes in pan. Remove tart from pan and transfer to a rack to cool completely.

– Just before serving, arrange the berries on top and drizzle with honey. Sprinkle with thyme leaves and serve.

– Enjoy!

Adapted from Driscoll’s