The Best Thing I’ve Ever Made

This freaking peanut butter and jelly linzer torte, y’all…

It is without a doubt the best thing I’ve ever made for this blog…and I’ve made many a sweet treats. Do you remember the No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake? This is better. The Orange Chocolate Chip Shortbread? Without a doubt, better. The Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes? Oh my god, so much better!

It’s so freaking good I wanna slap myself in the face! Ok…I’m feeling a bit “extra,” right now. Let me try to bring it down…<deep breath>

You’ll have to forgive me; I’m just so freaking excited about this pie. It has the most amazing almond-hazelnut cookie crust. After rolling it out and making the lattice, I had a bunch of scraps left over. I tasted it and then kept on tasting it, like some sort of cookie junkie who’s been waiting on her next fix. Truth.

This pie is like a hot peanut butter and jelly sandwich, fresh from the oven…except it’s better because now it has crispy cookie crust. What? How can you say “no” to that?

That’s easy. You can’t.

Recipe for Peanut Butter and Jelly Linzer Torte

Recipe for Peanut Butter and Jelly Linzer Torte adapted from Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook

The Best Thing I've Ever Made

Prep time

2 hours

Cook time

40 mins

Total time

2 hours 40 mins

Makes one 9 inch Peanut Butter and Jelly Linzer Torte

Author: Mondo

Serves: 10

Ingredients

½ cup hazelnuts, 2.5 ounces
1 cup almond meal, 5 ounces
1⅓ cup flour
¾ t baking powder
¾ t ground cinnamon
¼ t salt
¾ cup butter, room temperature, 6 ounces
1 cup sugar
1 large egg yolk
1¼ cup raspberry preserves
¾ cup creamy peanut butter

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Spray 9 inch tart pan with baking spray and set aside
Place the hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and roast until fragrant, about 15 minutes.
Quickly rub the hazelnuts with a clean dish towel until the skins come off. Let cool.
While the hazelnuts are cooling, place flour, almond meal, flour baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl and combine.
Place hazelnuts in a food processor and pulse until finely ground, about 15 seconds.
Add ground hazelnuts to the flour mixture.
In a mixer, place butter and sugar and beat until creamy, about 3 minutes.
Add the egg yolk and combine until thoroughly mixed, about 1 minute.
With the mixer on low, add the flour-hazelnut mixture; beat until just combined.
If you have a kitchen scale weigh your dough. It should be about 26.5 ounces. Divide it in half.
Place half the dough in the tart pan and press all the up the sides.
Put the tart pan on a lined baking sheet and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Take the remaining dough and roll it into a 13 inch round between 2 pieces of parchment paper. The dough should be ¼ inch thick.
Chill in the freezer until firm, about 20 minutes.
Take the chilled tart crust out of the fridge and spread peanut butter evenly on the bottom. Top with raspberry preserves.
Return tart pan to fridge.
After the rolled dough has chilled, cut into a round slightly larger than 9 inches. I used the top side of a 9 inch cake pan.
Cut dough into ¾ inch strips with a pastry wheel.
Remove tart pan from the fridge and lay strips in a lattice pattern. Do not try to weave them. Place one layer of strips and top with a second layer.
Press the edges of the strips into the edge of the tart.
Chill in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Place rack in the middle of the oven.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Bake tart for about 40 minutes or until the crust is golden.
Cool in pan for 20 minutes then remove and let cool on a rack.
Torte can be kept at room temperature, loosely covered for 3 days but I like to store it in the fridge.
For a real treat, place a slice in the oven and heat for 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Enjoy!