German Spitzbuben Or Linzer cookies? YES!
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One of my absolute favorite Christmas Cookies is the Austrian Linzer cookie. Their cheery white powdered sugar contrasts beautifully with the traditional raspberry filling peeking through making them instantly recognizable. But did you know Germany has its own version? Yes, the Spitzbuben! Although sometimes Swizterland claims the Spitzbuben too.
BUT essentially they’re the SAME cookie just claimed by different countries in the same region. You can find recipes for Swiss Jam Cookies, German Linzer Cookies, Linzer Cookies, German Spitzbuben, Swiss Spitzbuben, and Austrian Linzer Cookies ALL over the internet. And generally, they’re all about the same. I based my version on a food.com recipe because it used what I had on hand.
I swapped out the
And I added a tiny bit of fine lemon zest because I LOVE lemon and raspberry together. When I say these cookies are divine I mean it.
Until I MADE them I always thought Linzer Cookies were too much fuss. Yes, this is from the lady who makes brandy Snaps and Florentines for fun. But once I made them I realized it wasn’t THAT hard. And Spitzbuben are kind of worth it.
Why am I making German Cookies? Obviously for German Week on the GBBO!
The bakes for German Week were:
- Signature Bake: 2 dozen German Biscuits
- Technical Bake: Prinzregententorte (after the Schicttorte I think we’ll be skipping that one!)
- Showstopper Bake: Tiered Yeast Cakes
We chose the cookies because layer genoise sponge isn’t fun and we just did Savarin Cakes as Rum Babas last winter!
These cookies are essentially Lizzie’s Bratty Boys but with powdered sugar like a Linzer OR Spitzbuben.
Why not make them for Halloween!?!
What do I need to Make Linzer Cookies?
- Round or Fluted cookie cutters, a large one and a small one, they can be the SAME design or different
- Sifter or Sieve
- Raspberry Jam
- Ground Almonds also sometimes called Almond Flour
- Cooling Racks
- Rolling Pin, try one with depth guides for rolling it out to the same size evenly
- Large baking sheets
- Silicone pan liners
Linzer Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg white
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1 1/4 cups almond meal/flour
- 2 teaspoon lemon zest
- 3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- powdered sugar
- raspberry jelly or jam
Instructions
- beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, 2-3 minutes
- add the egg white, almond flour, and flavorings
- beat well
- the stir in the flour until well combined
- pat out to a rectangle on plastic wrap and cover tightly, refrigerate 30 minutes
- preheat the oven to 325˚
- take one-quarter of the dough and roll it out on a silicone baking mat to about 1/6 of an inch, this is where the rolling pin with depth markers comes in handy
- use the big cookie cutter to cut out 6-8 big cookies, and then cut out the middle of the cookies with the smaller cookie cutter–you can do this ANY way you like, it doesn't HAVE to be right dead center
- refrigerate the tray of cookies extra dough and all for 15 minutes, meanwhile roll out another tray
- after 15 minutes peel off the extra cookie dough and bake in the preheated oven for 12-14 minutes
- chill any remaining dough between rolling out batches to keep it cold
- when the cookies are set and just very lightly browned remove the tray to a cooling rack
- continue rolling and baking cookies in pairs until the dough is gone
- when all the cookies are done and cooled separate the tops of the cookies on a separate cooling rack
- put some powdered in a sifter or a sieve and sprinkle over the tops of the cookies
- spread raspberry jam on the bottoms of the cookies
- stack one powdered sugar top over the cookie spread with jam and set aside
- repeat with remaining cookies until all are matched
Nutrition
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What brand of jam did you use? My raspberry jam that I have right now is rather thin, and I think it might just run right out of the cookies!
I used our homemade jam but Bonne Mamam is nice and thick and it’s what I use when I run out of homemade!!
Since seeing this on the Great British Bake Off, I’ve been looking for an easy recipe, so I’ll be making these later!
I’ve never made Linzer Cookies because I too thought they were too much fuss and complicated looking. Yours look professional and delicious and I love the Halloween theme too.
Here’s looking at you, kid! Love these cookie
Being German, our family bakes both Spitzbuben and Linzer all the time. They have been family favorites for as long as I can remember.
They are NOT the same cookie. The dough is similar in texture but it is the spice profile that is different in each. My recipes for both Spitzbuben and Linzer are from my uncle who was a professional pastry baker in Germany.