Tate’s Bake Shop Linzer Heart Cookies and a Valentine Giveaway For You

I’m sweet on Tate’s Bake Shop! 

They’re best known for their mouthwatering chocolate chip cookies.  But they also have many other delicious goodies, such as:  brownies, pies and breakfast treats.  And, unless you’re new here, you know of their great giveaways I’ve hosted in the past.

Kathleen King is the owner/operator of Tate’s Bake Shop ~ who began when she was just 11 years old ~ by baking and selling her crisp, buttery chocolate chip cookies at her father’s farm stand.   She was hoping for enough money to buy her school clothes, and then it turned into a success story with her owning her own business.   
 

Kathleen King

When Kathleen’s not baking, she’s writing a cookbook, and she has a plethora of fantastic recipes in her latest one, Baking for Friends. 

And, since Valentine’s Day is closing in, I am sharing with you her recipe for Linzer Heart Cookies.  Just make a batch of these for your loved ones and see how happy you will all be!  And, by the way, they make tasty gifts too!

Tate’s Bake Shop Linzer Heart Cookies

An important tip: be sure to chop the nuts and chocolate very fine in a food processor (pulse to chop so the friction doesn’t warm them), or the dough will be too rough-textured to roll out smoothly. You need a graduated set of heart-shaped cookie cutters to make these Cookies.

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 
1 cup cornstarch 
¼ teaspoon salt 
¾ pound (3 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 
2 cups toasted, skinned and very finely chopped hazelnuts
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, very finely chopped 
-plus-
½ cup seedless raspberry jam 
½ cup confectioners’ sugar for sifting 

1. Sift the flour, cornstarch, and salt into a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat the butter and confectioners’ sugar with an electric mixer set on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Beat in the egg and vanilla, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, mix in the flour mixture, just until combined. Mix in the hazelnuts and chocolate.

2. Gather up the dough and shape it into a flat disk.
Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours. (The dough can be refrigerated for up to 1 day. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes to soften slightly before rolling.) 

3. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough to a round about ¼-inch thick. Use a 3 ½-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the cookies as close as possible to avoid excess scraps. Arrange the hearts about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Gather up the dough scraps and gently knead together, and cut out more cookies. If the dough becomes too soft to roll out, refrigerate until chilled. You should have 40 cookies. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour. 

4. Position the oven racks in the top third and center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. 

5. Use a 1-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the centers of 20 cookies. These will be the cookie tops. (You can bake the mini hearts to nibble on later! Don’t throw away or re-roll.) Bake, switching the position of the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking, until the cookies begin to brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Sift some of the ½ cup of confectioners’ sugar over the hot cut-out cookies Let cool completely on the baking sheets. 

6. Spread the jam on the cookie bottoms, leaving an 1/8-inch border around the edges. Add the tops, sugared sides up, and press together gently. Just before serving, sift the remaining confectioners’ sugar over the cookies.
Yield: 20 sandwich cookies

Tate’s Bake Shop is celebrating the holiday by offering 50% off a Valentine's Cookie Cube & Cookbook combo -- now just $21.50 -- along with 20% off any web store purchase! To redeem the 20% offer, just use the code BLOG213 at checkout. When you click here, you will see the details on the combo.  Believe me, there’s something there for every one of your Valentine’s!

And now, my dear readers, I have a Tate’s treat just for you!

Thanks to the generous folks at Tate’s Bake Shop, I am giving away one Valentine’s Cookie Cube and Cookbook Combo!  Check it out here, to view all you will enjoy after winning. 

All you have to do is:

   *** Leave a comment below on this post and tell me what your favorite Tate’s Valentine’s treat is.

And:

   *** Tell me how you are following Pam’s Midwest Kitchen Korner, using one or more methods from this blogs right sidebar:  Google Friend Connect, or Become a Fan on Facebook, or Facebook Networked Blogs.

How easy is that…

The contest is open until midnight, Central Standard Time, on Monday, February 4, 2013.  The winner will be chosen by a random number generator on February 5, 2013.

This giveaway is open only to U.S. resident.

Good luck and I hope you win!

Now ~ tell me!  What’s your favorite Tate’s treat for your Valentine?