Claire Meneely launched Nashville’s Dozen Bakery in 2009 as a one-woman cookie pop-up at local farmers’ markets. Along with Dozen’s six core cookies, Meneely sold a linzer made with freshly ground almonds and a sweet-tart raspberry jam.
Now, the linzer only appears around certain holidays, including on Dozen’s Christmas and Valentine’s Day menus. It was “born from a deep love for the classic linzer torte,” says Meneely, who knew she wanted to include the Austrian pastry when she founded her business, though the torte pivoted to a cookie version to better align with Dozen’s product assortment. “I consistently made too many linzer cookies for the markets just so I would have a few leftovers to enjoy.”
Developing the recipe was a “delicious” process, Meneely says, involving adjustments to the cinnamon and lemon zest in the dough and much jam testing. “Too much jam and it’s squishy and all slides apart, too little and it’s underwhelming,” she says. “The cookie needs to be delicate and buttery but not crunchy, so we reworked the amount of butter and egg.”
Dozen uses traditional round fluted cookie cutters at Christmastime and heart-shaped ones around Valentine’s Day. For home bakers trying out the recipe, Meneely says any nut and jam combination that sounds appealing is worth a try. “Don’t discard those little cutout holes!” she says. “Bake them on a separate tray—they cook faster than the larger cookies—for a delicious bite-size snack for the baker to help you get through the assembly process.”
