Spitzbuben (swiss Jam Cookies)

Total Time: 1 hr 12 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 12 mins

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 cups butter (or margarine)
• 2 1/4 cups ground blanched almonds (may be called almond meal at the store)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla flavoring
• 3 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• fruit jam (flavor of your choice, but make sure there are no fruit chunks in it)
• confectioners' sugar

Recipe

• 1 beat the sugar and butter together until light and fluffy.
• 2 beat in the almond meal and vanilla flavoring.
• 3 add the flour and knead until smooth.
• 4 chill dough in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.
• 5 preheat over to 325 degrees.
• 6 roll out the dough on a lightly floured cutting board to the thickness of 1/8"-1/4" (the thinner the dough, the better the cookie).
• 7 cut with small round, star, or diamond-shaped cookie cutters.
• 8 use a smaller cookie cutter to cut a "window" in half the cookies (these will be the top of the cookie sandwiches).
• 9 place all the cookies on lightly buttered and floured cookie sheets.
• 10 bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden.
• 11 remove cookies from the baking sheet and let cool.
• 12 spread the cookies without a "window" with fruit jam.
• 13 coat the cookies with "windows" in confectioners' sugar, and then place on top of the cookies with fruit jam.