Linzer cookies (Linecke cukrovi)

Method

• step 1

  Put the flour, sugar, butter and a pinch of fine salt into a food processor, and pulse several times until there are no visible pieces of butter left. Add the yolks and vanilla, and pulse again until the mixture has just come together to form a dough.

• step 2

  Remove the dough and use your hands to bring it together into a ball. Wrap it tightly in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hrs or overnight.

• step 3

  Remove the dough from the fridge 15 mins before rolling. Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3 and line 3-4 baking sheets with baking paper. Dust a surface with flour, then cut the dough in half. Roll one half to a 3mm thickness, dusting with more flour as needed to ensure it does not stick to the surface or rolling pin.

• step 4

  Using shaped 8cm cutters, cut out as many biscuits as you can and put them on the lined baking sheets. Bake for 7-9 mins until just cooked through but not yet browned – they should be pale. Set aside to cool on the trays.

• step 5

  Roll out the second piece of dough and cut out the same number of the same shapes. This time, use a smaller cutter to cut out a hole in the centre of each one. Put these on the lined baking sheets and bake for 6-8 minutes (they take about a minute less than the solid biscuits). Leave to cool on the trays.

• step 6

  Once cool, turn the biscuits without holes upside down and spread each one with jam. Dust the biscuits that do have holes with icing sugar, then sandwich on top of the jam-covered biscuits.

• step 7

  Transfer to a sealed container and keep in the fridge overnight before eating to allow the jam flavour to be absorbed. After that first night, the biscuits can be stored at room temperature for up to a week but they will keep for up to a month when stored in the fridge – and I think they taste better chilled.