Best Chocolate Linzer Hearts Recipes

LINZER HEART COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flour, cocoa, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves; gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in almonds. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle. , On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a 3-in. heart-shaped cookie cutter. From the center of half the cookies, cut out a 1-1/2-in. heart or round shape. , Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool., Spread 1/2 teaspoon jam over the bottom of the solid cookies. Sprinkle cutout cookies with confectioners' sugar; carefully place over jam.

LINZER HEARTS

Steps:

• In a food processor, combine the cookie crumbs, almonds and 2 tablespoons of sugar; pulse until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Transfer to a large bowl. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt and stir it into the almond mixture.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter. Beat in the remaining sugar. Beat in one egg and the vanilla extract until creamy. Stir the dry ingredients into the butter mixture until just combined. Halve the dough, form into 2 disks, wrap in plastic and chill until very firm, at least 2 hours.
• On a floured surface, roll out half the dough to a 16-inch thickness. Use a pastry brush to brush off excess flour on the top of the dough, and use a large (about 3 1/2 inches at its widest point) heart-shaped cutter to stamp out as many hearts as possible. Use a wide spatula to transfer them to parchment-lined cookie sheets and chill. Gather the scraps, form into a disk and refrigerate. Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Using a slightly smaller (about 2 inch wide) heart-shaped cutter, cut out the centers of half the chilled hearts. Leave the exterior rings on cookie sheets, and add the cut-out centers to the scraps. Roll out the chilled scraps and cut out an equal number of large hearts and rings. Chill them for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a cup, lightly whisk the remaining egg. Remove the chilled large hearts from the refrigerator and, using a small pastry brush, brush a coating of egg around the edges of each. Use a spatula to carefully lift the rings from the cookie sheets and place each over a heart. Press gently with your fingers to make them adhere. Brush the rings with more egg. Bake the cookies until the hearts are lightly colored, about 10 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and drop about a tablespoon of the preserves into the centers, spreading to fill. Return the cookies to oven and bake until the jam is set but not bubbling, about 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool the cookies on the sheets.

MINI LINZER COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
• Roll the dough 1/4-inch thick and cut 2 3/4-inch rounds with a plain or fluted cutter. With 1/2 of the rounds, cut a hole from the middle of each round with a heart or spade shaped cutter. Place all the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and chill for 15 minutes.
• Bake the cookies for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature. Spread raspberry preserves on the flat side of each solid cookie. Dust the top of the cut-out cookies with confectioners' sugar and press the flat sides together, with the raspberry preserves in the middle and the confectioners' sugar on the top.

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE LINZER HEART

Steps:

• For crust:
• Position rack in lowest third of oven. Set cookie sheet on rack and preheat to 375°F. Remove bottom from 10 1/2x9 1/2-inch heart-shape tart pan with 1-inch-high sides and removable bottom. Place bottom on parchment and trace heart shape.
• Finely chop nuts with sugar in processor. Add flour, cinnamon, salt, cloves and ginger. Process just to blend. Add butter and cream cheese to processor. Process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 1 egg and chocolate. Process, using on/off turns, until large moist clumps form.
• To form top crust, transfer 1 1/3 cups dough to pastry bag fitted with no. 4 (3/8-inch diameter) plain tip. Refrigerate remaining dough. Pipe 7 parallel diagonal lines about 3/4 inch apart across heart outline on parchment. Pipe border around edge of heart inside traced line, touching ends of diagonal lines (some dough may be left over in pastry bag). Freeze 10 minutes. Brush dough with some egg white. Slide parchment with heart onto heated cookie sheet and bake until crust is golden and edges are beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Run long thin spatula between crust and parchment to loosen crust. Slide parchment with heart-shape crust onto rack and cool completely. Maintain oven temperature.
• Return removable bottom to heart pan. Press remaining dough onto bottom and 3/4 inch up sides of pan, using plastic wrap if necessary to prevent dough from sticking to hands. Freeze until dough is firm, about 10 minutes. Brush lightly with egg white. Set pan on heated cookie sheet and bake until crust is golden brown and sides are beginning to pull away from pan, about 23 minutes. Spread bottom crust evenly with 1/3 cup jam. Bake 3 more minutes. Cool crust completely on rack.
• For filling:
• Stir chocolate, butter and cream in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat until chocolate and butter are melted and mixture is smooth. Mix in 2 tablespoon jam. Cool slightly. Pour filling evenly into bottom crust; smooth top. Chill until filling is firm, about 30 minutes.
• Spread remaining 1/3 cup jam over filling and outer edge of bottom crust. Carefully place cooled heart-shape top crust atop jam. Press gently to seal. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead.)
• Remove torte from pan. Transfer to platter. Let stand at room temperature 45 minutes. Arrange raspberries in row in first space between crust lines. Spoon whipped cream into pastry bag fitted with small star tip. Pipe row of small rosettes in second space between crust lines. Continue, alternating rows of raspberries and whipped cream rosettes between crust lines.

LINZER COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine flour, cocoa, salt and spices; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in almonds. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle., Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 2-1/2-in. round or cookie cutter. From the center of half the cookies, cut out a 1-1/2-in. shape., Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool completely., Spread bottom of each solid cookie with 1/2 teaspoon jam. Sprinkle cutout cookies with confectioners' sugar; carefully place over jam.

LINZER HEART COOKIES

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar and salt. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the almonds, cocoa, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves; mix well. Add flour; mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut with a floured 3-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter. Cut a 1 1/2-inch heart from the center of half of the cookies.
• Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.
• Spread 1/2 teaspoon jam over the bottom of the solid cookies; place cutout cookies over jam. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.