Today is Black Friday and the official start for Christmas shopping. For the past couple years, my mom, my daughter and I have ventured out in the dark and cold night to go Christmas shopping. We usually leave around 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning and laugh while we stand outside in freezing cold lines. My daughter refers to it as "shopping in the middle of the night" and she thinks it's the greatest thing in the world.
Another reason we love Black Friday shopping is because we always go out to breakfast. All three of us LOVE going out to breakfast and really enjoy having our own special girl time.
While out shopping, I will be packing a couple of these Linzer Torte Bars in my purse. After all, you cannot let a hunger pang pull you away from a great sale or bargain!
While commenting on Donna's blog, My Tasty Treasures, I noticed her Linzer Torte Bars. If you haven't been to Donna's site, then you must go now! She always has great recipes.
The Linzer Torte Bars are a real cinch to make, you can use any flavor of preserves or jelly, and they are seriously tasty and addictive. My mom loves blackberries, so I used a seedless blackberry jam and they turned out really tasty.
Linzer Torte Bars - adapted from Donna from My Tasty Treasures
1 cup flour
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup ground walnuts
1/2 cup softened butter
2/3 cup preserves/jam (Donna's recipe calls for raspberry preserves)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Preheat oven to 375F. Mix all ingredients with a spoon, except preserves, until crumbly. Press 2/3rds of the crumbly mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 9x9 square pan. Spread with preserves. Sprinkle remaining crumbly mixture; press gently into preserves.
Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool completely one hour. For 48 bars, cut into 8 rows by 6 rows bars, or cut into any size you like.
Notes/Results: A super quick cookie or bar to whip up in no time! Although I am a chocoholic, I LOVE these bars. In fact, I have become addicted to them. I love that the recipe requires so few ingredients. I also love the idea that you can use any flavored preserve or jam. These are one of my favorite cookies/bars that I have made in quite some time. A great choice for a cookie platter.
Thanks to Donna of My Tasty Treasures for a new family favorite!!
Check out the cookie monsters below to see what they baked up this week:
Megan of My Baking Adventures
Barbara of Barbara Bakes
April of Abby Sweets
Megan of Megan's Cookin
Denise of Keeper Worthy Recipes
Hope you had a super happy and fun thanksgiving! Have a fun black friday :D, dont forget to pick me up a goodie daaaaaaahling, oh, and i'll take one of those bars too.
ReplyDelete*kisses* HH
I've been thinking about making a linzer cookie and I love this bar cookie version!
ReplyDeleteYou are crazy! Shopping in the middle of the night in the cold! ;-)
ReplyDeleteNice to have a tradition with your daughter.
Lovely bars, they look yummy!
Those bars look fantastic, Kim!
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine shopping in the middle of the night - but I'll bet it's a lot of fun!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Linzer Bars - I'm going to have to try those!
I only remember my family doing this once, a few years ago, when my sister really wanted a Wii for Christmas. There was word that a few of the toy stores near us were going to get a shipment and so we all trekked out to different ones. It sounds like fun though! I am going to hit up Modell's soon for some running stuff. It's late, I know, but sleep was just more important to me than sales. Haha.
ReplyDeleteLinzer tortes are my FAVORITE cookie. Ever. I made a linzer cake for christmas last year. These bars look fantastic!
How great is this recipe! Linzer cookies are too much trouble. I'll bet a few sprinkles of chocolate chips over the raspberry preserves will be a good thing. Definitely on my short list of cookies to bake this Christmas.
ReplyDeleteMy husband is German and tried making Linzer cookies for me last year. After much work, they ended up being fed to the chickens! (and I was actually cleaning up dough from the light fixture in the kitchen...go figure). I think I will make HIM these!! haha...great recipe, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThey look absolutely delectable. Will need to try. Hooray for you and your baking adventures. Laughed about the middle-of-the night shopping.
ReplyDeleteI haven't made linzer cookies in ages. Brava for you. They look scrumptious.
ReplyDeleteyou guys are brave, i've yet to brave the black friday crowds. i was telling my husband today though that it would be a lot of fun to take my daughter since she's getting older.
ReplyDeletei think i could get addicted to those bars too, they look wonderful!
I just can't do Black Friday but I admire your spirit! ;-) Linzer bars are some of my favorite cookies--Yum!
ReplyDeleteMy grandma, mom and I would always go out on Black Friday too! And snacks were a must--I would always bring bfast on the go and then a lunchbox filled with goodies. These bars look amazing! I would have to use blueberry preserves :-)
ReplyDeleteI am such a total fail at bars of any kind. Don't know what I do wrong even though they taste great, they sort of blend all together with no layers! But I might try these with our favoite Lingonberry Jam.
ReplyDeleteI love linzer-things!! And it has to be raspberry to be linzer...but I bet more flavors would taste delicious as variations, as well :D
ReplyDeleteThank you Kim for your kind shout out. Your bars look gorgeous and makes me want to make them again!!
ReplyDeleteGood one! I have had my eye on these. Love the flavor combo. When I was in Austria I ate Linz cookies as much as I could!
ReplyDeleteAt 4:00 a.m. on Black Friday my husband nudged me awake jokingly to ask if I wanted to go to Target as it was just opening... I laughed and rolled back over to sleep. I love Black Friday shopping just not at 4:00 a.m.. like you, I love the experience of being with the girls eating and shopping till we drop.
ReplyDeleteThose linzer bars look really good. Linzer is one of my favorite cookies. Which means that these bars pack a double punch and would send me over the top-YUM! A couple of those bars out of your purse and a Starbucks, life would be good.
these look really good! I have been eyeballing them from Donna's site too.
ReplyDeleteSimple and Yummy, these look great! I have something for you on my blog too- you just rock!
ReplyDeleteThat sounds so fun! And these bars look so yummy. I love linzer tortes - these are so much easier to make with the same delicious flavors. You haven't been posting - hope all is well with you!?
ReplyDeleteMy mom makes these cookies. We love them!
ReplyDeleteKudos to those who can stand Black Friday shopping. It sounds like torture to me but I'm glad you enjoy yourself.
Nice blog : )
These bars DO look good! However, they are not quite the recipe I was trying to find. I had a recipe similar to linzer bars, except that you baked the cookie in two large, flat pieces. Then, you spread the raspberry preserves on one side, topped with the other, wrapped the whole thing in tin foil, and let sit for a couple of days so that the preserves sink into the cookie. If this sounds familiar to anyone, please email me!!!
ReplyDeleteThis is exactly the recipe I've been hoping for, few ingredients:) Will give these a whirl!
ReplyDelete