One of my favorite things to do is flip through cookbooks. Especially ones with photos. And the first things I always flag are desserts I can make without having to leave the house. A recipe where every ingredient is already in my cupboard/fridge/secret snack hiding spot.
Sometimes I’m tempted to omit things from recipes for simplicity’s sake, or of course if I don’t have them in the kitchen, but I really think every component of this dish works wonderfully together. The tartness of the zest, the spice from the cloves and the rich buttery-ness of the ground nuts, are together greater than their sum.
If you’re having trouble pressing the dough in to the pan because it is too sticky, just spray your hands with a little cooking spray. My family always laughs at me when I do this, but it gets the job done!
Raspberry Linzertorte
¾ cup sugar
zest of one lemon
zest of one orange
1½ sticks (6 ounces/12 tablespoons) butter or margarine, softened
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups flour
1 ounce ground hazelnuts (about 1/4 cup)*
1 1/2 ounces ground almonds (about 1/3 cup)*
1¼ teaspoons cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups raspberry jam
Mix the zests and sugar together with your fingertips until moistened.
Let sit for 5 minutes.
Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
Add in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and beat until combined.
Add the flour, nuts, cinnamon, cloves, baking powder and salt and mix until combined.
Split the dough into two portions – one slightly bigger than the other.
Wrap the larger portion in plastic wrap and freeze for 20 to 30 minutes.
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Leave the smaller section at room temperature and place into a piping bag.
Press the larger piece of dough into a 9-inch tart pan – covering the bottom and sides evenly. Return the pan to the freezer for 20 minutes.
Spread the jam evenly in the tart shell and pipe lines across the tart with the remaining dough.
Bake on 350 F for 40 to 45 minutes until nicely browned. Dust with confectioners’ sugar before serving.
*If you use whole nuts and grind them yourself in a food processor, add the flour in with the nuts before processing. This will help ensure that you don’t end up with nut butter instead.
Click here to read previous Nosh Pit columns. And be sure to visit Amy’s ‘Baking and Mistaking’ blog for more baking ideas and adventures.
E-mail amy@jewishweek.org with any questions.
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