Feb 8, 2021

Jammy Heart Cookies

My jammy heart cookie recipe is a pretty way to tell someone you care.

Linzer cookies are always a special treat. Though usually seen around the holidays, they are perfect foodie way to tell someone you care anytime of year, but especially on Valentine's Day.

These are gluten-free, dairy-free, and great for ovo-lacto vegetarians.

It's easier to make these cookies if you have two sheet pans available. This way as one batch is chilling you can be rolling out the next batch. Otherwise you will need to wait for the sheet pan to get cold between batches.

TIP: The raw dough will last in the refrigerator for up to 3 days as long as it is well wrapped in clingwrap, or in the freezer in and airtight container for up to 3 months. Baked cookies without jam can be frozen for up to 1 month in an airtight container. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before assembling.

Ingredients

(Makes 28 servings | Serving size = 1 cookie)

1 cup fine ground almonds
2/3 cup Monkfruit baking sweetener
scant 2, 1/2 cups cassava flour (or all-purpose flour), plus more for rolling
heaping 3/4 cup plant-based butter, cold and cubed
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
1/2 cup strawberry or raspberry jam

For dusting:

1 cup Monkfruit baking sweetener (or confectioner's sugar)

Directions

In a food processor add the ground almonds and sweetener. Pulse the processor until it resembles fine sand. Add the flour, cubed cold butter, vanilla extract, salt, egg and additional yolk. Blend until it forms a dough.

Divide the dough into 4 even portions. Roll each portion into a ball, flatten them down, then cover tightly with clingwrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Take two portions of dough out of the refrigerator and let them stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes

Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C. Have two sheet pans set aside along with several sheets of parchment paper cut to 1/2 of the size of the sheet pan.

Unwrap the clingwrap from one portion of dough and place it between two sheets of the cut parchment paper. Roll out the dough until it is about 1/16th of an inch thick. Carefully peel off the top sheet of parchment paper.

Dip the edge of a medium-sized, heart-shaped cookie cutter into some flour then cut six hearts into the rolled dough. These cookies won't really spread, so it's safe to cut them about 1/4-inch apart. Lift away the excess dough, leaving the hearts on the parchment paper. Form the excess dough into a ball and cover it with the clingwrap so it won't dry out.

Slide the parchment paper with the whole hearts onto the sheet pan.

Repeat this entire process with the second portion of dough, only this time, use a second, smaller heart-shaped cookie cutter dipped in flour to cut a smaller heart out of the larger heart shapes. You can use a toothpick or skewer to carefully remove the excess dough from inside the heart. Slide the parchment paper onto the sheet pan beside the first batch of whole hearts.

Again, roll the excess dough with the excess from the first portion and cover in clingwrap.

If your kitchen is very warm, and the sheet pan will fit, place the sheet pan with the dough hearts into the refrigerator for 10 minutes before sliding it into the oven (this will help the cookies maintain a sharp edge while baking). Bake the cookies for about 10 minutes, or until the edges begin to turn a light golden brown.

Remove the tray from the oven and slide the parchment sheets onto a cooking rack.

Repeat this entire process with the third and fourth portions of dough, and the excess removed as you make these batches.

Once the cookies are completely cold, dust the top cookies (the ones with a cut-out heart) with baking sweetener.

On the whole hearts, spread 1/2 a teaspoon of jam out until it is just shy of the edge of the cookie. Then, carefully picking up the tops by their edges, and place them on top of the jammy whole hearts.

Arrange on a pretty plate and enjoy.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: