This is a really great recipe that you can put just about ANY of my jams in.
A tasty treat for any occasion!
(adapted from recipe by Martha Stewart by my pal Michelle Risucci)
Directions:
- In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and almond meal.
- In a bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the egg yolks and vanilla; beat to combine, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed add the almond-flour mixture and beat until just combined.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work space, divide in half and shape into flattened disks. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.
- Remove one disk of dough from the refrigerator and let stand until softened slightly (this prevent the dough from cracking when rolling out). Roll out the dough to ⅛-inch thickness on parchment paper that is lightly floured. Transfer parchment paper and dough to a baking sheet and freeze until firm, about 20 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough.
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove one sheet of dough from the freezer and, while working quickly, cut into heart shapes. Cut out center from half of the shapes with a smaller heart cookie cutter. (If the dough starts to soften, return to the freezer for a few minutes). Using a metal spatula, transfer the heart shapes to prepared baking sheets and freeze once more until firm, about 15 minutes.
- Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until cookies are crisp and lightly golden all over, about 15 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely; cooled cookies can be stored overnight in an airtight container at room temperature before filling. Spread the flat sides of the whole hearts with about 1 teaspoon of jam. Sift powdered sugar over the open heart and place atop the whole hearts. Serve immediately.
Yields approximately 1 dozen 3-inch heart cookies