Trude Reder of Long Branch, New Jersey, writes: "My mother's recipe for linzertorte is one of my favorites. It brings back memories of my childhood and of my mother and grandmother busy baking in the kitchen, the delicious aroma of cinnamon and cloves filling the whole house. I've been baking this dessert for family and friends since my husband and I came to this country from Austria over 45 years ago. Now, I've started teaching my own grandchildren the recipe, hoping they will love it as much as I do."
Don't substitute jelly for the jam in this recipe — it might leak from the crust.
Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 3 1/4 hr
• Dough can be formed into disks 1 day ahead and chilled, wrapped well in plastic wrap. • Torte keeps in an airtight container at room temperature 2 days.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes 8 servings
Ingredients
Special Equipment
Preparation
Step 1
Grind almonds with half of sugar in a food processor until powdery (be careful not to process to a paste), then transfer to a small bowl.
Step 2
Add butter, yolk, and remaining sugar to processor and blend, scraping down sides, until light and fluffy. Add ground almonds, flour, zest, salt, cinnamon, and cloves and pulse, scraping down sides if necessary, until a dough forms. (Dough will be sticky.)
Step 3
Divide dough into 1 one-third portion and 1 two-thirds portion and form each portion into a disk on plastic wrap. Wrap disks in plastic wrap and chill until slightly firm, about 30 minutes.
Step 4
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.
Step 5
Unwrap larger disk and put in springform pan. Cover surface with plastic wrap and press dough (through plastic wrap) evenly onto bottom and 1/4 inch up side of pan. Discard plastic wrap.
Step 6
Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes, then transfer crust in pan to a rack and cool completely, about 30 minutes. Leave oven on.
Step 7
Roll out remaining dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap into a 9-inch round, then transfer to a baking sheet and freeze 10 minutes. (Round will be thinner than bottom crust.)
Step 8
Remove top sheet of plastic and cut dough into 12 (1/2-inch-wide) strips, then freeze strips 5 minutes. Discard any remaining dough.
Step 9
Spread jam evenly over cooled crust, leaving a 1/4-inch border around edge, then arrange 6 strips 1 inch apart across jam, pressing ends onto edge of crust. Arrange remaining 6 strips 1 inch apart diagonally across first strips to form a lattice with diamond-shaped spaces. (Repair any broken pieces of dough by carefully pressing them together.) Trim edges of all strips flush with edge of pan.
Step 10
Bake until top is golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool in pan on rack 10 minutes, then remove side of pan and cool completely.
