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Linzer Stars
from the I dream in pastry cookbook at idreaminpastry.com
The crust
3/4 lb. butter
1 cup ground walnuts
2 cups flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup corn starch
Crust preparation
The filling
1 cup high-quality red raspberry preserves
Side note
This recipe requires a set of graduated star cookie cutters.
Press all crust ingredients together in a bowl until a dough forms. The oil from the butter and nuts will be sufficient to make these ingredients into a workable dough. In summer, or if the butter is very soft, you may need to add additional flour so that the dough is easier to work with.
The assembly
Roll out 1/3 of the dough on a floured surface until it is about 1/8 inch thick. Use the largest star cutter to cut out cookies. Place the cut outs on a piece of alluminum foil spread out on a cookie sheet. (It is a lot easier to remove the cookies from the foil than from the cookie sheet.)
Lightly brush the cookies with beaten egg. Place a tablespoon of filling in the center of each cookie and top with another large star cookie that has had its center cut out with the smallest star cookie cutter.
It is a little difficult at first to get the top cookie lined up correctly and to prevent it from falling apart in the process. Practice will ultimately make this any easy process.
Brush the top of the cookie with beaten egg. Bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees.
Another side note
When you cut out the center of the top star cookie, you can use those centers to make little linzer sandwich cookies. Bake the little stars and after they cool put a dot of raspberry filling between two cookies, then dust with powdered sugar.