I have been visiting my mother on Gabriola Island in British Colombia, Canada.  My dad chose Gabriola as the place he wanted to retire and build a house before he passed away and, a year ago, my husband and I got married here.  My mum comes takes her vacation at the house every August and someday she will retire here too.  It is a very beautiful place…arbutus trees, sandstone cliffs, mossy forests, the sun setting in to the ocean…the whole nine yards.  In short, I am very lucky to get to visit Gabriola Island so often.

There are two foods which I very rarely eat in New York City out of pure born Northwest Coast snobbery…Salmon and Blackberries.  I like to eat pacific salmon that has been caught by one of my parent’s friends, not too long ago and not too far away.  I like to eat blackberries while standing in the middle of a blackberry patch in the hot August sun, covered in scratches.  I like to eat them until I am full.  Then I fill my bag until blackberry leaks onto my toes.  Then I go home and make jam from the berries.  In a perfect world, I then make hazelnut linzertorte cookies and fill them with the home-made blackberry jam.

Last summer I tried to make  gluten-free blackberry linzertorte cookies after our wedding for our camper honeymoon.  I didn’t have access to my recipe so I just winged it.  The cookies I made last year were okay, but this year I was sure to bring this excellent recipe for gluten-free linzertorte with me.  It is adapted from Gluten-Free Baking Classics by Annalise Roberts.  I have spoken highly of this book in the past.  I highly recommend it!

The original recipe calls for walnuts and raspberry jam. I prefer almonds or hazelnuts and when I can get my hands on good berries, I use blackberry jam.  Almond flour makes a rich cookie with a nice smooth texture.  You don’t really taste the almonds.  Almond linzertorte are  sometimes called “light” linzertorte.  The ones pictured below were made with blackberry jam, but I actually think that the more creamy almond cookies might be better with a good tart raspberry filling.  Here is a photo of light linzertorte….

Hazelnuts make a more textured cookie with a very nutty flavour.  These are my favourite and they are sometimes referred to as “dark” linzertorte.  I think that they go especially well with blackberry.  My sister, who has lived in BC her whole life and knows a thing or two about what grows here, pointed out that Blackberries and Hazelnuts both grow very happily in this climate.  Here is a photo of dark linzertorte…

DARK HAZELNUT LINZERTORTE COOKIES WITH BLACKBERRY FILLING

adapted from Gluten-Free Baking Classics by Annalise Roberts

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup confectioners sugar
• 3 tablespoons of beaten egg
• 1 and 1/2 cups brown rice flour mix (scroll down for the recipe)
• 1/2 cup mochi flour
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum (optional)
• 1 and 1/3 cup ground toasted hazelnuts (or almonds for light linzertorte)
• 1/2 cup homemade not too sweet blackberry jam (or good store-bought jam READ THE LABEL IF YOU ARE GLUTEN FREE!!! SOME JAMS CONTAIN WHEAT)  If you are making the jam you may want to cook it a bit longer than usual so it is good and set, or throw in a bit more lemon or a crab apple for additional pectin.

1. Cream the butter and sugar.
2. Add the egg and mix until smooth.
3. Add flours and xanthan (if using) and beat until a smooth dough forms.
4. Mix in the ground hazelnuts or almonds.
5. Roll the dough 1/4 inch thick between two sheets of wax paper.
6. Chill the dough.
7. Cut the cookies with a cookie cutter.
8. Chill the cookies
9. pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees.  Grease a baking sheet.
10. Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes.
11. 4 hours before serving, assemble the cookies into sandwiches with jam filling.
12. Dust with confectioners sugar if you like!

Gluten-Free Rice Flour Mix

• 2 cups brown rice flour
• 2/3 cups potato starch (NOT POTATO FLOUR)
• 1/3 cup tapioca flour