When Nancy Huth started making cookies with her children for the holiday season it had already been a family tradition she had created with her own mother.
Though of German descent, Huth’s mother, Marie Wittmann, was born in Yugoslavia and spent part of World War II in two different Russian internment camps. It was in the second camp she met her husband and together they moved from Europe to the United States following the war.
Once in the United States, the Wittmann’s maintained connections to their German heritage through food, music, and dance. Huth said that while growing up, her family not only made cookies and German foods around Christmas, but also enjoyed making German cookies and dishes for weddings and other cultural events. Huth and her family also passed out cookies to her neighbors and friends for the holiday season.
The tradition of making Linzer cookies has now been passed down to Huth’s three children, including daughter Brittany, who helped Huth make the cookies the last two years. Huth said it was, “Nice to watch my mother and daughter spend time together and learn family traditions”.
Reflecting on her experience as a daughter, Brtianny said, “I enjoy spending time with my grandma and she enjoys baking. I think of all of the years she made them and like being part of the family tradition”. The day Brittany and her mother made the cookies, they called Whittman, getting her to clarify the German directions on the family’s recipe card.
To create the Huth family Linzer’s cookies follow the family recipe listed below.
- Recipe Ingredients:
- Dough ingredients:
- 5 cups of flour
- 4 sticks of butter (will need to be room temperature when using for the dough)
- 2 table spoons of shortening
- 2 cups of sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 yokes
- Optional: lemon zest
- Filling:
- Desired seedless jam
- Dough ingredients:
- Steps to Making Cookies:
- Mix all ingredients together, once eggs and yokes are placed in knead the dough
- Once dough is smooth roll dough out until it is ¼ in thickness
- Cookie bottoms – Get a circle cookie cutter and cut out desired number of cookies using half of the dough
- Cookie tops – Using the other half of the dough cut out a second set of cookies using the same circle cookie cutter. Next get a small circle, the Huth’s use a thimble, and puncture a small hole in the center of each cookie.
- Place all cookies on baking trays separating the cookie tops and bottoms.
- Both cookie tops and bottoms will cook between 5-7 minutes at 350 degrees. Make sure to monitor cookies and remove them from the oven when they are starting to get golden brown on the edges.
- Once cookies have cooled spread the desired flavor of seedless jam on the cookie bottoms.
- Next placed cookie tops on top of the jam.
- Once all cookies have been made sprinkle powdered sugar on top.
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