Marzipan Kränze (German Marzipan Wreath Cookies)

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 30

Chilling Time 1

Servings cookies

Calories 120

Author Margaret Bose Johnson

Equipment

piping bag with a fluted star tip (like #22)

Ingredients

1 cup (225 g) salted butter
½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2½ cups (350 g) gluten-free flour blend or regular all-purpose flour for non-gluten-free
14 oz (400 g) prepared almond paste or marzipan
3 large egg whites
¼ teaspoon pure almond extract
1¼ cups (350 g) raspberry jelly or other tart red seedless jam or jelly

Instructions

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat until combined.
Add the flour and beat until it is all incorporated and a soft dough is formed.
Divide the dough in two and shape each into a flat disc. Wrap in plastic food wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour (or up to 3 days). If it's longer than 1 hour, remove the dough discs from the refrigerator 30 minutes before rolling out so they soften a bit.
Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃). Line several cookie sheets with parchment paper or grease them with cooking oil spray.
Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 5 mm thick (a little less than ¼"). (If the dough is too firm, beat it lightly with a rolling pin first to flatten it slightly. Cut out circles with a crinkle-edged cookie cutter about 2¼-2½ inches (6 cm) in diameter and lay them, ½-inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
Make the Marzipan Wreath Dough: Pinch the almond paste into small bits and put them into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the almond extract and the egg whites, one at a time, beating well after each addition, until you have a smooth dough with no lumps. Scoop the marzipan into a piping bag fitted with a fluted star tip (#22 works well).
Pipe a neat circle on top of each cookie, all around the outer edge.
Bake the cookies until they are just starting to turn golden at the edges, 15-18 minutes for gluten-free flour (12-15 minutes if using regular wheat flour).
While the cookies are baking, heat the raspberry jelly or jam in a saucepan over medium heat until it comes to a boil and all the jelly is dissolved (no small blobs of jelly remain).
When the cookies are baked, let them cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then remove them to a cooling rack. While they are still warm, gently pour 1 teaspoon of hot, melted jelly into the center of each cookie (make sure to use a metal teaspoon or 1-teaspoon measuring spoon), gently pushing it to flow and touch the inside of the marzipan wreath on all sides. Cool completely before eating.
Makes ~4½ dozen cookies.

Notes

If you only have regular raspberry jam, you can push it through a sieve to remove the seeds.

Almond paste and marzipan are similar, but almond paste is slightly coarser and contains more almonds and less sugar. Use it if you can find it. Marzipan is finer and sweeter, but can be used in this recipe, too.

Nutrition