As the seasonal "winter" holidays approach, I offer the following recipe for anyone who might wish to expand thier cooking skills and eating enjoyment. There is nothing quite so rewarding** as a home-made traditional treat from the kitchen.
(** Thaiboy Tricks and Massage Parlor Romps are in a different category of rewarding treats.)

Linzer Torte
(Torte aux Framboises à l'Alsacienne)
Note: This recipe can be fashioned into small individual cookies using mini tartlette molds.

For some undefined and singular reason, most Frenchmen loathe cinnamon, and for that matter root beer ! However, in the German influenced Alsace-Lorraine region there is some tolerance of the spice: It can be found in some marinades . . . and as a key flavor in the famous and revered Austrian pastry - Linzertorte.

Historically this torte - and one can get lost trying to define “ torte” - dates from the early 1700’s and is named for the Austrian city of Linz. There are as many recipes as there are cooks. Some are multi-layered affairs; some are glazed with beaten egg whites; some are thick; some are thin. For sure, however, all have an almond or hazelnut & cinnamon crust ... and all have raspberry jam as a filling. Most (but not all) are topped with a crisscross pastry lattice and dusted with confectioner’s sugar.

125 grams (4 & 1/2 oz.) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup almonds, ground, blanched or un-blanched, or ground roasted hazelnuts
1 cup flour
2 level tablespoons (20 grams by weight) ground cinnamon
1 egg
6 heaping tablespoons raspberry jam, seedless
confectioners sugar, for dusting
1. In the Kitchen Aid fitted with the flat paddle, cream the butter and sugar until it is light and fluffy, reduce the speed and add the ground almonds, flour, cinnamon and the egg.
2. Working quickly, pat out the dough between sheets of wax paper and refrigerate for two hours or more. (Since this is a very soft dough it must be handled very quickly while it is still cold. Return it to the refrigerator in between steps or whenever it becomes too sticky.)
3. With the dough still between the sheets of wax paper, roll into a circle about 1/2-inch thick, form into a buttered 9-inch flan ring or tarte pan, saving trimmings, and refrigerate, covered, both the tarte and the trimmings.
4. Spread the tarte with the raspberry jam, roll out the trimmings and cut into 1/2-inch strips and crisscross them over the top of the jam filling.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F. for approximately 25 minutes.
6. Allow to cool, dust with confectioners sugar, and serve.

Annotations © “Tuckerton”: This particular rendition of Linzer Torte was dictated to me by Chef Georges Perrier who gives credit to his mother who happens to be from Alsace-Lorraine. The “shortness” of the crust is the secret that makes this recipe the best I have ever sampled”