Description
These classic German sandwich cookies feature a delicate hazelnut-infused shortcrust filled with bright strawberry jam. By focusing on cold ingredients and a quick bake, you can achieve a perfectly soft, buttery texture that stays fresh throughout the holiday season.
Ingredients
- 400g all-purpose flour
- 200g cold butter, cubed
- 50g ground hazelnuts
- 3 egg yolks (Grade M)
- 100g granulated sugar
- 1 packet vanilla sugar
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 pinch salt
- 130g strawberry jam
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Sift the flour into a large bowl and work in the small pieces of cold butter using a pastry cutter or your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
- Add the egg yolks, sugar, ground hazelnuts, lemon zest, vanilla sugar, and salt, then quickly knead until a smooth dough forms.
- Wrap the dough tightly in cling film and refrigerate for at least two hours, or ideally overnight, to let the flour hydrate and the fat firm up.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F) and roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of approximately 3mm.
- Use cutters to create an equal number of solid bases and rings with center holes, then bake on parchment-lined sheets for 8 to 10 minutes until pale golden.
- Heat the strawberry jam with lemon juice, dust the top rings with powdered sugar, and place a teaspoon of warm jam on each base before pressing the rings on top.
Notes
To maintain the most tender crumb, handle the dough as little as possible to keep the butter from melting before baking. If your kitchen is warm, work with only half the dough at a time while keeping the rest chilled. For the best flavor development, let the assembled cookies sit for 24 hours in an airtight tin so the moisture from the jam can slightly soften the centers.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: German