Salted Caramel Linzer Cookies
These salted caramel linzer cookies are made with a buttery shortbread cookie sandwiched together with a rich salted caramel!
This post is sponsored by Amoretti. All opinions are my own – thank you for supporting the brands that make Sturbridge Bakery possible!
These salted caramel linzer cookies are one of my favorite cookies to make around the holidays. The buttery & crisp shortbread cookie with silky smooth caramel is a delightful combination that looks beautiful when dusted with powdered sugar! It is the perfect Christmas cookie for a holiday party, cookie box, or simply just to enjoy while snuggling on the couch.
This recipe was made using Amoretti’s Natural Salted Caramel Artisan Flavor Paste. It is such a wonderful addition to both the cookies & caramel that adds so much lovely caramel flavor!
Why you will love these salted caramel linzer cookies
- Buttery & crisp shortbread. The shortbread cookies are crunchy, buttery, and have such a great flavor.
- Salted caramel filling. Smooth silky caramel in every bite? Yes please!
- Fun to make & decorate. These cookies are so fun to make, especially around the holidays! They’re perfect for your Christmas cookie boxes, cookie exchanges, or just to enjoy with your loved ones!
Ingredient notes
- All purpose flour: flour is the main dry ingredient in this recipe – it gives the cookies the structure they need for a sturdy yet tender dough.
- Butter: we use both salted & unsalted butter in this recipe. Salted butter is used for the caramel, while unsalted is used in the cookies.
- Sugar: granulated sugar is used to sweeten both the salted caramel & the cookies.
- Egg: adds moisture & binds the ingredients together in the shortbread.
- Vanilla extract: good quality pure vanilla extract is so important in baking – it adds so much wonderful flavor.
- Natural Salted Caramel Artisan Flavor Paste: I used Amoretti’s natural salted caramel artisan flavor paste for the BEST caramel flavor in both the cookies & the caramel! It is so potent & doesn’t bake off, so a little goes such a long way!
- Heavy cream: used in the caramel.
See recipe card for the full list of ingredients & their quantities.
Steps
- Make the salted caramel. Heat sugar on the stove until it melts into a smooth amber color. Add the cubed butter and whisk to combine. Then add the heavy cream and whisk to combine. Remove from the heat and whisk in vanilla, salted caramel artisan flavor paste, and salt. Set aside to cool in the fridge.
- Mix wet ingredients. Beat together the butter & sugar until combined and fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla extract, & salted caramel artisan flavor paste and beat until combined.
- Add dry ingredients. Add the flour & salt and beat until a dough forms. Wrap in plastic wrap & chill for at least one hour.
- Roll out the dough. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface & use a round fluted 2 ½ – 3 inch cookie cutter & a small 1 inch cookie cutter (shape of your choice!) to cut out as many cookies as possible. Ensure you are cutting out the same number of solid cookies and cookies with a center cutout.
- Bake. Place the solid cookies on one baking sheet & cookies with a center cutout on another. Place in the freezer while you preheat your oven to 350F. Bake for 11-13 minutes until set and lightly golden.
- Assemble. Dust powdered sugar on the top cookies. Pipe caramel on the underside of the bottom cookies. Sandwich together & enjoy!
FAQ
Store the cookies in an airtight container in the fridge so the caramel remains set. You can also freeze these cookies for longer storage.
Absolutely! Make the caramel in advance and store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use. You can also make the shortbread ahead of time & store them in an airtight container until ready to assemble.
Absolutely! I prefer homemade caramel, but the cookies will still be delicious!
I used a linzer cookie cutter (which I love!). But you can also use one round fluted 2 ½ – 3 inch cookie cutter & a small 1 inch cookie cutter to create the same effect!
Cookie baking tips
- Use a kitchen scale. I cannot stress this enough – a kitchen scale is the only way to ensure accurate results. They are cheap and will make cleaning up so much easier.
- Accurately measure the flour. One of the most common mistakes in baking is over-measuring flour. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, spoon the flour into a measuring cup and level it off with a knife. This will prevent the flour from being over-packed.
- Properly chill the dough. Proper chill time is key for rolling out the dough. Too soft and the dough can stick to your surface or break easily. Too long and the dough will be too cold and crack.
- Avoid working too much flour into the dough. When you are re-rolling the dough scraps & cutting more cookies out, try your best not to work a lot of flour into the dough. This will make the cookies really dry & more prone to cracking.
- Use piping bags. Piping bags will make assembly much easier with less clean up! Piping bags can usually be found in the baking isle at the grocery store, or find them on Amazon!
Baking in grams
I rely on gram measurements when testing recipes because they offer the highest level of accuracy (and less cleanup!). Unlike volume measurements, which can vary, grams provide a reliable and consistent standard. I carefully test all of my recipes using this kitchen scale, therefore I cannot guarantee the outcome when using volume measurements. However, volume measurements are available in the recipe card.
Other Christmas cookies to try
Have you tried this recipe? I would love to know how it turned out! Leave a star rating & review below and tag @sturbridgebakery on Instagram so I can see photos & videos of your yummy bakes! Want to save this recipe for later? Tap the heart button on the right side of your screen!
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Salted Caramel Linzer Cookies
Ingredients
Salted Caramel
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons (85 grams) salted butter, room temperature, cubed
- ½ cup (120 grams) heavy cream, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ tablespoon Amoretti Natural Salted Caramel Artisan Flavor Paste
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Shortrbread
- 1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ tablespoon Amoretti Natural Salted Caramel Artisan Flavor Paste
- 2 ¼ cups (281 grams) all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
For Dusting
- powdered sugar
Instructions
- To make the caramel, add the sugar to a saucepan over low-medium heat and continuously stir the sugar around the pan.1 cup granulated sugar
- It will clump up before it melts into a smooth amber/caramel color.
- Once the sugar is completely melted, add the cubed butter to the pan. Be cautious as the mixture will bubble up. Whisk vigorously until the butter is melted and mixed with the liquid sugar. Let the mixture bubble for 30-60 seconds while stirring occasionally.6 tablespoons salted butter
- Slowly & carefully stream in the heavy cream while whisking constantly until the heavy cream is combined (the mixture will bubble up again). Allow the caramel to boil for 30-60 seconds while whisking occasionally.½ cup heavy cream
- Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract, natural salted caramel artisan flavor paste, and salt. Pour in a heat proof bowl and put in the fridge to cool & thicken while you make the cookies. Stir occasionally to ensure an even cooling.1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ tablespoon Amoretti Natural Salted Caramel Artisan Flavor Paste, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- To make the cookies, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.1 cup unsalted butter, 1 cup granulated sugar
- Add the egg, vanilla extract, and the natural salted caramel artisan flavor paste, and beat on medium speed until combined, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl if necessary.1 egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ tablespoon Amoretti Natural Salted Caramel Artisan Flavor Paste
- Whisk the flour and salt together then add it to the wet ingredients. Beat on low-medium speed until a dough forms. The dough will be thick. Form the dough into a smooth disc, wrap in cling wrap, and refrigerate the dough for at least one hour.2 ¼ cups all purpose flour, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Once the dough has chilled for an hour, line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Unwrap the dough and place it on a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough out until it is about ¼ inch thick.
- Use a round fluted 2 ½ – 3 inch cookie cutter & a small 1 inch cookie cutter (shape of your choice!) to cut out as many cookies as possible. Ensure you are cutting out the same number of solid cookies and cookies with a center cutout. Place the solid cookies on one baking sheet and cookies with a center cutout on another. Space them about 1-2 inches apart. Re-roll the dough & repeat. If the dough seems too soft, you can re-chill it until firm again.
- Place the baking sheets in the freezer while you preheat your oven to 350F.
- Bake the solid cookies for 12-13 minutes & cookies with a cutout for 11-12 minutes until set & lightly golden on the edges.
- Remove from the oven and let them cool for 5 minutes on the pan, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Once the cookies are cool, dust all of the top cookies with powdered sugar.powdered sugar
- Remove caramel from the fridge and transfer to a piping bag. Pipe some caramel on the underside of a bottom cookie. Sandwich with a top cookie. Store in the fridge until ready to serve so the caramel remains set. Enjoy!
Tried this recipe? Make sure to rate and review and tag @sturbridgebakery on Instagram!
About how many cookies does this recipe make? Thanks!
Roughly 20-25 cookie sandwiches depending on the size of cookie cutter used!