Linzertorte Cookies

These are a Christmastime regular in my kitchen and a favorite treat to add to Christmas gift baskets.

Yield: approximately thirty 2.5" diameter cookies

ingredients:

• 1 cup nuts, toasted and coarsely to finely ground (any combination of almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts and pecans is great - just use what you have on hand)
• 1 cup oats, regular or quick, ground in with the nuts (see instructions below)
• 1 1/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder (optional)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 cup light vegetable oil (I use sunflower)
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• zest of 1 orange or lemon (I usually prefer orange)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract
• 1/4 cup jam (I use raspberry, but really any jam will do)

method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a blender, grind nuts and oatmeal together into a coarse meal.

In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients.

In a smaller bowl, combine all wet ingredients.

Add wet ingredients to dry and stir to form a stiff dough.  Add a bit more flour if the dough looks too wet. You will be rolling it between sheets of wax paper, so it must not be wet or sticky. 

Place a sheet of wax paper on your work surface and place a dough ball of about 1/3 the total mass onto the sheet. Press flat, then top with a second sheet of wax paper and roll out the dough until it is about 1/4" thick.  

Stamp out the desired shape with a cookie cutter and transfer cookies to baking sheet. 

Once all the dough has been used up, make shallow indentations in the center of each cookie with your finger or thumb.  Fill indentations with a small amount of jam.

Bake until slightly golden, about 15 - 17 minutes.

Let cool on baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack.

Recipe adapted from: Sweet and Natural by Meredith McCarty