Raspberry Linzer Cookies

These classic buttery shortbread sandwich cookies are filled with raspberry jam and finished with a dusting of icing sugar. I have always absolutely loved Linzer cookies!! The design is just too cute and they are so much easier than they look to make! When I was deciding what to put in my 2025 cookie boxes, I knew I needed to add these in. They are the perfect cute addition to this holiday season and oh so yummy.

Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

• ¾ cup icing (powdered) sugar, sifted

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

• ½ cup Italian raspberry jam

• Additional flour, for rolling

• Additional icing sugar, for dusting

Instructions

Make the Dough

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, icing sugar, salt, and vanilla on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

3. Add the flour and mix on low speed until just combined. The mixture will start to come together into a soft dough.

4. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead gently for about 1 minute, or until a cohesive ball forms.

5. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to firm up for rolling.

Roll and Cut

6. Lightly flour your work surface and rolling pin. Roll the chilled dough to ¼-inch thickness.

7. Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out as many circles as possible. Gather and reroll the scraps as needed.

8. Using a 1½-inch Christmas-shaped cutter, cut a window in the center of half of the cookies. These will be the tops.

Bake

9. Arrange both the solid cookies and the cut-out tops on parchment-lined baking sheets.

10. Bake on the upper and lower racks, rotating and swapping the pans halfway through, until the edges are lightly golden, 15–20 minutes.

11. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool completely on the sheets.

4. Assemble

12. Spread a thin layer of raspberry jam over the flat side of each solid cookie.

13. Dust the cut-out cookies generously with icing sugar.

14. Gently place the sugared tops onto the jam-coated bottoms to form sandwich cookies.

Notes

• For the cleanest cuts, keep the dough chilled. If it softens, refrigerate briefly before continuing.

• Italian raspberry jam has a thicker consistency, which helps the cookies stay crisp.

• Cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 4 days.