Halloween Ghost Linzer Cookies

How cute are these Halloween Ghost Linzer Cookies? First of all, I’m one of those crazy people who love Halloween. As a result, every year I create cute treats for this blog.  Additionally, I regularly host a Halloween martini party in our NYC apartment. It is my yearly excuse to have fun creating Halloween-themed finger (haha) foods and desserts. And, of course, there is a selection of Halloween-themed martini flavors. From Candy Corn to Poison Apple.  It seems like most people who imbibe crawl home. I definitely make those suckers strong.

Anyway, onto these Halloween Ghost Linzer Cookies. Traditional almond based Linzer cookies sandwich whatever flavor jam you like.

These Halloween Ghost Linzer Cookies come together in no time. Be aware the dough needs to be refrigerated for at least two hours or overnight. It takes 10 minutes to throw the dough together. Consequently, it is a great make-ahead cookie.  Once you cut out the cookies, bake them for 10 minutes. when they have cooled completely, spread your favorite jam on one side. Dip the other side in powdered sugar, top the one with the jam and you’re done.

For the jam, besides the taste, go with the Halloween theme. Use red, orange, purple, or green-colored jam. This is a good recipe to clean out the half or quarter jars of jam or jelly in your fridge.

TIPS:

If you have more than one ghost-shaped cookie cutter, use as many as you have. Different ghost-shaped cookies look adorable on a Halloween cookie platter.

I used a straw to create the eyes and mouths. Use single holes for the eyes and then cut out two holes one on top of the other for the mouth.

The cookie itself contains almond flour. Consequently, I’ve included a recipe below for making your own. These Halloween Ghost Linzer Cookies are soft, chewy, and have great almond flavor. The kids will love these and the adults will certainly appreciate the flavor.

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Ghost Linzer Cookies for Halloween

Course Dessert

Cuisine Austrian, German

Keyword Ghost Linzer Cookies

Prep Time 25 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Chill Time 2 hours

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 1 dozen

Author Lora Wiley-Lennartz

Ingredients

• 1 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup almond flour*
• 1/4 cup Powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup jam or jelly. Red, Orange, green or purple work well for Halloween colors

Tools:

• Ghost shaped cookie cutter
• 1 straw

Instructions

1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl and set aside.

2. In a mixer cream the butter and sugar together, about 3 minutes.

3. Blend in the egg, then the vanilla.

4. Add the dry ingredients and then the almond meal until everything is just mixed in.

5. Wrap the dough in plastic film and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.

6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

7. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

8. Roll the dough out on a floured surface and cut out the cookies with a ghost shaped cutter.

9. On half of the cutouts, use the straw to create two eyes. For the mouth cut two holes on top of each other. 

   

10. Place the cutout cookies and the solid ones on different baking sheets. They will have different baking times. The cutout ones will bake faster.

    

11. As you fill up the baking sheets, place them in the freezer for a few minutes before transferring to the oven. This will prevent the cookies from spreading too much.

12. Bake the solid ghost cookies for 10 minutes. Bake the ghost cookies with the cutout face for 8 minutes or until just slightly golden around the edges. While the cookies are warm, redo any holes with the straw that have closed up after baking. 

13. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely.

14. Spread the solid cookie (the one without the cutouts) with a thin layer jelly.

    

15. Dust or dip the cutout cookie with powdered sugar and place it on top of the jelly covered cookie.

    

16. Plate and serve but definitely hide a few for yourself.

17. *I buy almonds already ground into flour. To make your own, pulverize blanched almonds in a food processor. Make sure you add a few tablespoons of powdered sugar to prevent the almonds from forming a paste.

Like these Halloween Ghost Linzer Cookies? Also, check out some of these other Linzer recipes:

PECAN PINEAPPLE LINZER COOKIES

LEMON SUGAR LINZER COOKIES

LINZER CHERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE STICKS