Apple Butter Linzer Cookies
 
 
Author:
Serves: about 30 cookies
Ingredients
Apple Butter
Apple Butter
  • 3 lbs apples, cored (you can peel them but you don’t have to if you’re lazy)
  • ¾ cup apple juice or apple cider
  • ½ cup light brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
Linzer Cookies
  • 2½ cups (315 g) all purpose flour
  • ½ cup (60 g) almond meal or ground almonds
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into 1-in pieces
  • ¾ cup (150 g) sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. For the apple butter:
  2. Combine all ingredients together in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven and cook uncovered on the stove over medium low heat for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until apples are soft and tender.
  3. Puree apples with an immersion blender or use a regular blender until very smooth.
  4. Return mixture to pot and continue to cook on medium low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent burning, for another hour to hour and a half until dark and thick and jam like. It should hold its shape on a spoon.
  5. Spoon mixture into container and refrigerate.
  6. For the cookies:
  7. Combine flour, almond meal, ground cinnamon, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
  8. Combine butter and sugar in food processor and process until light and fluffy, a couple minutes.
  9. Add egg and process until combined. Add vanilla extract and process until combined.
  10. Add flour mixture and beat on low speed until the dough just comes together.
  11. Turn out dough onto a clean surface, divide in half, and form each piece into a flat rectangle about 1 inch thick. Wrap each rectangle in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours until firm.
  12. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line several cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
  13. Roll dough to about 1/16 inch on lightly floured surface. Cut out shapes with a 2-inch wide cookie cutter. Use a small cookie cutter to make cutouts in half of the cookies, so when you make sandwiches the filling will show through. Arrange cookies on cookie sheets about 1 inch apart.
  14. Chill cookies on the sheets for about 15 minutes before baking (This will prevent them from spreading).
  15. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes, until cookies turn golden brown and smell like toasting nuts, rotating sheets halfway through. Cool sheets on wire racks.
  16. Wait until cookies are completely cool before assembling them.
  17. To assemble the cookies:
  18. Spread apple butter over cookies without cutouts. Place cookies with cutouts over the other halves. Store in an airtight container between layers of waxed paper. Serve within a day as the cookies will get soggy.
Recipe by Dessert First at https://dessertfirstgirl.com/2019/10/apple-butter-linzer-cookies.html