Happy Tuesday my friends! I’m baking like crazy this week because my last Christmas recipe should be posted by Sunday so you have time to get all the ingredients you need.
I have a bunch of pretzels (leftover from Thanksgiving) and I don’t really like to eat them like a snack so before they get bad I came up with this idea of incorporating them to a cookie. And… my favorite holiday cookie is… LINZER! So, instead of using nuts, I use pretzels. They are filled with homemade caramel, but if you are running out of time, you can get caramel sauce in the store.
Before you start with this recipe. Don’t forget to get your LINZER COOKIE CUTTER SET. Here is the pic of the one I have:
Don’t forget that I always post how I make my recipes on Instagram. Don’t forget to follow me there @Pastry_Tales
Let’s start with the recipe.
Yield about 25-30 linzer cookies
Ingredients
For the cookie
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3 1/2 cups pretzel twists. You have to put them into a blender or food processor until they are fine crumbs. You’ll have to use 1 1/2 cups of ground pretzels.
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into small pieces
1 cup white granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the caramel filling
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup white granulated sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
For decoration
1/2-3./4 cup powdered sugar
Directions
For the cookies
1.- In a medium size bowl mix flour, ground pretzels, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
2.- In a bowl of a mixer, beat butter for a couple of minutes until fluffy. Then, add both sugars (white and light brown sugar). Mix for a couple of minutes. Add eggs (one by one). Finally add vanilla extract. Mix for 1 more minute.
3.- Add dry ingredients into the butter mixture and in low speed mix until everything is well incorporated. Dough will be soft and sticky.
4.- Form into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and chill until firm. I usually chill my dough overnight. I usually cut the dough in half and make 2 discs.
Next morning…
Tip: Just take out from the fridge the disc that you will work with first. Dough has to be really cold to work with. If needed, you can place the dough in the freezer for half an hour before rolling (I didn’t need that).
5.- Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/8-inch thick.
4.- To make the bottom cookie, simply take the cookie cutter apart by squeezing the edge and releasing. This will give you a cookie cutter to make the base/bottom cookie. Then, put the cookie cutter back together to make the top cookie. When pressing down on the dough with the cutter, simply press the ejector. Remember you will need the same amount of bottoms and tops.
5.-Transfer to the prepared baking sheets. Re-roll dough scraps as needed.
6.-Place the cookies in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to chill. This will help to keep the shape of the cookies.
7.-Bake for 11-12 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before filling.
While the cooking are cooling off, let’s make the caramel filling.
For the filling
1.- In a small pan mix cream, butter and salt. In low heat mix until the butter melts. Set aside.
2.- In a medium size pan, mix white granulated sugar and corn syrup. Mix and cook in low heat till it reaches 305-310 F. degrees. You have to keep an eye while this caramel cooks, be patient. Using a spatula mix until it reaches that amber color and the right temperature. It will bubble and the color will change quick, this process will take about 10 minutes.
3.- Add the cream mixture into the caramel and whisk, whisk really fast so everything is well combined. Pour it into a bowl and let it cool.
Let’s fill the cookies
1.- Place the cookies with the holes in them on a cookie sheet and sift the confectioners’ sugar over the top.
2.- Turn the remaining cookies flat side up and spoon 1/2 teaspoon of caramel into the center. Stick both parts together.
3.- If the caramel gets hard, place the bowl into the microwave and warm it up.
Enjoy!