Soft, buttery shortbread with just a hint of lemon, filled with sweet raspberry jam and finished with a dusting of powdered sugar. They’re simple, classic, and the most perfect holiday cookie.
Yield
About 30–32 sandwich cookies
Total Time
About 1 hour
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Ingredients
• 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened (3 sticks)
• 1 cup powdered sugar, plus extra for dusting
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Zest of 1 large lemon
• ⅔ cup seedless raspberry jam
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How to Make Linzer Shortbread Cookies
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and salt and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy — about 3–4 minutes. Add the vanilla and lemon zest and mix until fully combined.
4. Slowly add the flour mixture, mixing just until a soft dough forms. It will look slightly crumbly at first, but it should come together when pressed.
5. Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and gently bring it together with your hands. Divide the dough in half and flatten each portion into a disc about ½ inch thick. Wrap and chill in the freezer for about 15 minutes to make rolling easier.
6. Lightly flour your surface and roll the dough to about ¼-inch thickness. Cut out cookies using a larger cutter, then cut a shape out of the center of half of the cookies. Place cookies about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets.
7. Bake for 8–10 minutes, just until the edges are lightly golden. You want them pale and soft, not browned. Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
8. Once cooled, spread about 1 teaspoon of raspberry jam onto the bottom cookies. Generously dust the cut out cookies with powdered sugar, and then gently press on top of the bottom cookie to make a sandwich.
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Notes from My Kitchen
• I used a Linzer cookie cutter set from Amazon, but any cookie cutters you have on hand will work just fine.
• The cookies may puff slightly while baking — they’ll settle as they cool.
• These cookies store well in an airtight container for up to a week and are perfect for gifting or holiday cookie boxes.
• You can easily swap the raspberry jam for strawberry, apricot or blackberry if that’s what you have.