Dotterbusserl (Egg Yolk Kisses)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Fine-mesh sieve (for pressing the egg yolks)
• •Hand mixer or stand mixer
• •Rolling pin
• •Small round cookie cutter (3-4cm)
• •Pastry brush
• •Wire cooling rack
• •Baking trays lined with parchment

Instructions

1. 1

   Hard-cook and sieve the yolks

   Place the five eggs in a small pot, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Once the water boils, reduce the heat and simmer for ten minutes. Drain, run under cold water until you can handle them, and peel. You only need the yolks. Set the whites aside for egg salad or tomorrow's Kokosbusserl. Press each yolk through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl using the back of a spoon. This takes a minute or two. You'll end up with a pile of golden, sandy crumbs that look like fine breadcrumbs. This is the heart of the whole cookie.

   The yolks must be fully cooled before you sieve them. Warm yolks smear instead of crumbling, and you want dry golden powder, not paste.
2. 2

   Cream the butter and sugar

   Beat the softened butter with the Staubzucker and Vanillezucker until pale, light, and fluffy. This takes three to four minutes with a hand mixer. Don't rush it. You're building the structure of the cookie here, beating air into the fat so the Busserl bake up tender instead of dense. Add the lemon zest and salt and beat for another thirty seconds.

3. 3

   Add the sieved yolks

   Add the sieved hard-cooked yolks to the butter mixture and beat on low speed until everything comes together into a smooth, golden mass. It will look like wet sand for a moment. Keep going. The butter will absorb the yolk crumbs and the mixture will turn uniformly rich and yellow. This is where the color comes from. Dotterbusserl should look like little golden coins when they're done.

4. 4

   Fold in the flour and chill

   Sift the flour over the butter mixture and fold it in with a spatula or wooden spoon. Stop the moment the flour disappears. Overworking develops gluten, and gluten is the enemy of a short, tender Busserl. The dough will be soft and slightly sticky. Wrap it in cling film and press it into a flat disc. Refrigerate for at least one hour. The butter needs to firm up or the dough will stick to everything and your rolling pin will become a weapon of frustration.

   If your kitchen is warm, chill the dough for ninety minutes. In Austrian farmhouse kitchens with stone floors, an hour was enough. In a modern kitchen with the oven already preheating, give it more time.
5. 5

   Roll and cut

   Preheat your oven to 170°C (340°F). Line two baking trays with parchment. On a lightly floured surface, roll the chilled dough to about four millimeters thick. Cut rounds with a small cookie cutter, three to four centimeters across. Gather the scraps gently, press them together without kneading, chill briefly, and re-roll once. Place the rounds on the prepared trays with a centimeter between them. They spread very little.

6. 6

   Egg wash and bake

   Brush the tops of the cookies lightly with the egg yolk and milk wash. One thin, even coat. This gives them their golden sheen and a slightly firmer top that contrasts with the sandy crumb inside. Bake for ten to twelve minutes, rotating the tray once at the halfway mark. You're looking for a light golden color across the top and just slightly deeper gold at the edges. They will feel soft when you touch them. Don't be fooled. They firm up as they cool. Pull them out before you think they're done.

   These go from perfect to overbaked in about ninety seconds. Set a timer and check at nine minutes. Every oven is different, and a Dotterbusserl that's baked even one minute too long loses its melt-in-your-mouth quality.
7. 7

   Cool completely

   Let the cookies cool on the tray for five minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. They're fragile when warm. Handle them like they cost you something, because they did: five egg yolks and 200 grams of butter. Once they're fully cool and firm, they're ready to fill.

8. 8

   Fill and dust

   Turn half the cookies flat-side up. Spread a thin layer of sieved Marillenmarmelade on each one. Thin means thin. A half-teaspoon, no more. You want a whisper of fruit sharpness cutting through the butter, not a jam sandwich. Press a second cookie gently on top, flat-side to jam, to make a little sandwich. Dust the tops generously with Staubzucker through a small sieve. Let them sit in the tin for at least a day before serving. They need time. Mahlzeit!

Chef Tips

• •Use real Vanillezucker, not vanilla extract. You can buy packets of it at any Austrian grocery, but making your own is simple: bury two split vanilla pods in a jar of caster sugar and forget about it for a week. It will smell like a Konditorei when you open it.
• •Sieve your Marillenmarmelade before filling. Push it through a mesh strainer to remove any fruit pieces. You want a smooth, glossy layer that spreads thin and clean. Chunky jam tears the cookies apart when you try to sandwich them.
• •Store these in a tin with sheets of parchment between the layers. They keep for two to three weeks in a cool place and genuinely taste better after a few days. The jam softens into the crumb and the flavors settle into each other. In our house, the Christmas tin was never opened before December 20th. The waiting was part of it.
• •If you don't have Marillenmarmelade, Ribiselmarmelade (redcurrant jam) works beautifully. The tartness is sharper, which some people prefer against all that butter. Don't use strawberry jam. It's too sweet and too soft.

Advance Preparation

• •The dough can be made one day ahead and refrigerated overnight, wrapped tightly in cling film. Let it sit at room temperature for ten minutes before rolling, just long enough to lose the chill without going soft.
• •Unfilled cookies can be stored in an airtight tin for up to a week. Fill and dust them when you're ready to serve or gift.
• •Filled Dotterbusserl keep in a tin for two to three weeks. They improve over the first three to five days as the jam merges with the crumb.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 20g)