Nothing says holiday like these tasty Linzer Cookies with Raspberry Jam, which are a perfect blend of a buttery cookie, sweet-tangy raspberry, and finished off with a kiss of powdered sugar.
And if you want to add some variety to your Christmas cookie platter, these Linzer Cookies go great with Double chocolate cookies and chewy M&M cookies.
Linzer cookies
These Linzer cookies with raspberry jam are a classic Christmas delight. The buttery cookies are sandwiched between raspberry jam and lightly dusted with powdered sugar. To make these a little extra Christmasy, I used snowflake cookie cutters, but you are welcome to use any shape you have on hand, as long as it’s about 3 1/2 inches in diameter.
Here is what ingredients you will need
- Dry Ingredients: You will need all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and powdered sugar for dusting the finished cookies.
- Wet Ingredients: Here you need unslated butter, cream cheese, egg, and raspberry jam to sandwich the cookies together.
How to make Linzer cookies
This is a quick run down. For the full detailed recipe, scroll down to the printable recipe card.
- Sift together the dry ingredients. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl.
- Cut the butter and cream cheese. Cube the butter and cream cheese and then use a pastry cutter to cut it into the dry ingredients, working until the butter cubes are pea-sized.
- Beat the egg and sugar. In a small bowl, beat the sugar and egg together with a fork.
- Combine. Take the egg mixture and pour it into a well in the center of the butter/flour mixture, then work the dough with your hands into a solid shape.
- Form the dough. Split the dough into 2 sections, cover each with plastic wrap, and place them in the refrigerator until firm, about 1 hour.
- Roll out the dough. Roll out one piece of dough until it is about 16 inches in diameter and about 1/8-inch thick.
- Cut out cookie shapes. Using a 3 1/2-inch snowflake cookie cutter, cut out shapes in the dough. Then, take a smaller snowflake shape to cut out the centers of half of the larger snowflakes. The whole ones will form the cookie bottoms and the others will be the tops.
- Re-roll the dough scraps. Roll out the dough scraps to 1/8-inch thick and cut out the snowflakes until the dough is gone. Do the same with the other refrigerated section.
- Bake. In a 350ºF oven, bake the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet for about 10 minutes, until they are golden brown.
- Add the raspberry jam. Once the cookies have cooled, add a teaspoon of jam to the bottom cookies, with most of it in the center. Then, place the tops over them and sprinkle each sandwiched cookie with powdered sugar.
How long do homemade Linzer cookies with raspberry jam last?
If you place these Christmas cookies in an airtight container, they will last at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Can I freeze Linzer cookies?
Yes, you can! Separate the cookies with parchment paper so that the jam does not cause the cookies to stick to each other (jam doesn’t freeze solid) and place them in a tightly lidded container. Raspberry Linzer cookies can last for up to 1 month in the freezer.
If you plan to freeze these cookies, it is best to not dust them with powdered sugar until they have thawed, otherwise, they absorb the sugar.
More Christmas cookies to try!
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (VIDEO)
- Chocolate Meringue Cookies
- Double Chocolate Cookies (VIDEO)
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (VIDEO)
- Amaretti Cookies (VIDEO)
- Jumbo Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies
Full Recipe Instructions

Linzer Cookies with Raspberry Jam
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- pinch salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter (cold)
- 4 oz cream cheese (cold)
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- Raspberry jam
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl.
- Slice the butter and cream cheese into cubes and cut it into the flour using a pastry cutter. Continue cutting into the butter until it resembles the size of peas.
- In a separate bowl, lightly beat the sugar and egg with a fork.
- Pour the egg mixture into the flour/butter mixture and work the dough into a solid shape with your hands.
- Separate the dough into 2 portions and wrap each piece with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 1 hour or until firm.
- Roll one piece of dough into a circle about 16 inches in diameter. The dough should be about 1/8 inch thick.
- Using a 3 1/2 inch cookie cutter, cut as many snowflakes from the dough as possible. Then using a smaller snowflake cookie cutter, cut through the center of half the cookies. These will be the cookie tops. The whole cookies will be the cookie bottoms. Gather up the dough scraps and roll it back into 1/8 inch thick and repeat the cutting process. Continue steps 6-7 with the remaining refrigerated dough.
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 10 minutes or until lightly golden-brown.
- Once the cookies are cooled, spread about 1 tsp of raspberry jam onto the cookie bottoms leaving most of the jam dolloped in the center. Then place the cookie tops on top. Lightly sift powdered sugar on top of each sandwiched cookie.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on December 7, 2017, we have updated it since.
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Diadiana says
Linzer cookies are one of my most favorite cookies. This is the first time I’ve ever made them from scratch… and OMG, so easy with so many simple ingredients! I did not have one cup of butter, instead, I used margarine and they came out insanely DELICIOUS! I made half of them with raspberry jam and the other half with apricot jam, equally yammy!!! Plus, if you have a toddler and do not know how to keep them busy on a cold/ snowy day, making this cookies will def keep them both entertained and creative????. Endless thanks for another awesome, simple, delicious recipe
simplyhomecooked says
Thank you for such a kind review! 🙂