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Linzer Torte – (aka Jam Biscuits in honor of the Royal Wedding!)

Linzer torte | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

A layer of raspberry jam is spread between a rich, buttery, hazelnut cookie dough. The crisscrossed lattice top is the signature design of what may be the oldest recorded pastry; the Linzer Torte. It was developed in Linz, Austria around the year 1650 and has been made much the same way ever since. Why fix it, if it is perfect just as it is. However, I can rarely leave things as they are, so I made them in bite sized portions.

There is a version of this same dessert in England and they call them Jam Biscuits. Today, after watching the Royal Wedding I think it fitting that we bake something British, even if they originated elsewhere. Check out the Linzer Cookie I made for the Cooking Channel blog, same ingredients, different look!

Cutting dough with round cutter | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Raspberry jam in tart crust | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Rolling linzer torte dough | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Rolled linzer torte dough | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Cutting linzer torte dough with pastry wheel | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Cut dough for lattice crust | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Linzer torte recipe | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

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Linzer torte recipe | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Linzer torte recipe | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Linzer torte recipe | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Linzer torte recipe | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François
Linzer Torte | ZoeBakes

Linzer Torte

Linzer Tortes are little jam biscuits fit for a royal wedding. The rich, buttery hazelnut cookie dough is a tasty exterior to the sweet raspberry jam inside. These are a mini version that come in perfect bite sizes.
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Servings: 18 4-inch tarts

Ingredients

  • 3 oz hazelnuts, lightly toasted
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup (~1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp orange zest
  • 1 3/4 cups cake flour
  • 3/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda

Instructions

  • Before grinding the nuts I roll them between my fingers to remove some of the skins, but not all. I like the look and flavor of the dough when some of the skins are left on. In a food processor, grind the nuts and 1/3 cup sugar until they are a very fine powder. Adding a bit of the sugar prevents the nuts from becoming a paste. Set aside.
  • In a separate bowl whisk together the cake flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Set aside
  • In a stand mixer, beat together the butter and remaining sugar until light and fluffy on medium speed, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the egg, vanilla and zest; beat until incorporated. Add the flour and the nuts, mix just until the dough comes together.
  • Separate the dough into two disks and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least an hour before rolling out. The dough can be frozen for up to a month.
  • Preheat the oven to 350°F, with the rack in the middle of the oven.
  • Use one 9-inch Tart Pan or 18 mini tart pans (4 Inches across the bottom).
  • Roll half of the dough out on a well-floured surface to ¼ -inch thick. As the dough warms up it will get sticky, so be sure to use plenty of flour.  (If using a 9-inch pan, carefully lift the round into the tart pan. Don’t worry if it cracks, you can press it back together.) If use a 4-inch Round Cutter to cut the dough. You can reroll the dough that is left as scraps. Fit the rounds into the mini tart pans.
  • Cover the bottom of the tart with jam, leaving a space around the edge to adhere the lattice top.
  • Between a sheet of parchment (or wax paper) and a sheet of plastic, roll out the other piece of dough. You want to roll it to 1/8-inch thick, which is difficult to achieve when doing it on the counter, it just gets too sticky.
  • Peel up the plastic.
  • Using a Pastry Wheel cut strips of dough. For the 9-inch version they can be as thick as an inch wide, but for the 4-inch tarts they should be no more than 1/2-inch wide.
  • If the dough is too sticky to handle at this point, put the parchment and dough in the freezer for about 5 minutes, or until it will peel off the paper easily. For the smaller tarts you will want to cut these strips into smaller pieces.
  • Here is some detail on creating the lattice top.
    You may have extra dough after creating your tarts, which you can save and make into the cookies on the Cooking Channel blog.
  • If making the small tarts, trim the lattice tops with a cookie cutter, so they fit nicely. You may need to freeze them again for a couple of minutes.
  • Once they are frozen they are easy to lift and place over the jam filled bottom layer of dough.
  • Press the edges together, so they will bake into one piece.
  • Bake for 25 to 40 minutes, depending on the size of the Linzer Torte. They should be golden brown on top.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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13 thoughts to “Linzer Torte – (aka Jam Biscuits in honor of the Royal Wedding!)”

  1. Wow, what a beautiful post! They are so perfect! And the tips on making the lattice top are super helpful – I have always been wondering how they make it :-).

    Zoe, I actually came to your site today to pass on to you some food blog awards that I’ve received last week http://cookingrookie.blogspot.com/2011/04/passing-on-food-blog-awards.html

    You are a pro, and probably beyond these awards, but I really wanted to mention your blog. It’s a constant source of inspiration for me. And the Artisan bread in 5 is probably one of the books that influenced my life most, in the most literal sense :-). I am addicted to bread baking now, it’s so much fun! So I just had to say thank you once again!

  2. I suppose you add the hazelnut mixture to the flour?
    Yours are my go to recipes, I deleted a lot of blog feeds and foodie sites and only kept a trustworthy short short list. Thank you for sharing your art with us.

    1. Hi Linda,

      Thank you so much! I have made the change to the recipe, to reflect when to add the nuts!

      Cheers, Zoë

  3. These are amazing. My dough was SO sticky and it wasn’t holding together well enough to make the lattice on top. I ended up just having to make stripes, and even that was difficult. Any suggestions? They still turned out beautifully and completely delicious 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!

    1. Hi Allison,

      It was still too sticky even after freezing the dough?

      Maybe part of the issue is that I didn’t specify to measure the cake flour with a scoop and sweep? I will fix the recipe to reflect this.

      Thank you, Zoë

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