Vegan Linzer Torte (Grandma's Original Recipe) (2024)

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This classic vegan Linzer Torte is quick and easy to make without eggs and dairy butter and is as delicious as the original tart recipe from Austria! It’s fruity, moist, nutty, fabulously delicious and lasts for a long time! The perfect dessert for Advent and Christmas!

The Best Vegan Linzer Torte

A crunchy, nutty cookie crust filled with a layer of fruity jam – If you love my Linzer cookies aka Spitzbuben biscuits, you’ll love Grandma’s vegan Linzer Torte too! Plus, it’s way quicker and easier to make because you only need to make one big Linzer tart instead of many little cookies. Super practically, isn’t it? 😛

What is a Linzer Torte?

Linzer Torte is a traditional Austrian pastry, a form of shortcake, made of an almond or nut shortcrust pastry “Linzer Teig”, filled with red currant jam “Ribisel-Marmelade”. It is typically layered like a pie or tart, covered with a lattice design of dough on top of the jam. However, it has a longer shelf life than most pies because it is made with preserved jam rather than fresh fruit.

While the original Linzer Torte is made with eggs and dairy butter, I simply made the vegan version of Grandma’s tart recipe by skipping the eggs and using dairy-free butter. And even though the Linzer Torte is egg-less, it’s just as delicious as the original! No one will notice the difference!

Ingredients used

Flour: preferably all-purpose or spelt flour. However, you can also sub gluten-free 1 to 1 baking flour to make the pastry gluten-free.
Hazelnuts: or almonds ground into flour.
Baking powder
Spices: Pinch of salt, cinnamon and gingerbread spice or cardamom or cloves.
Raw cane sugar: or other sugar.
Vegan butter: cold and diced.
Red jam: I like to use low-sugar red currant or raspberry jam. However, you can also make your own compote from frozen berries (see the fruit filling recipe of my raspberry almond cake).
To brush: dairy-free cream or milk mixed with a pinch of turmeric (optional for color).
Slivered almonds: to garnish the sides of the tart.

How to make Linzer Torte

As always, I recommend checking out this step-by-step instruction and the recipe video first. Then you’ll find the full recipe with exact measurements in the recipe card below!

Step 1: Make the linzer pastry dough

First, mix the flour, ground hazelnuts, baking powder salt, cinnamon and sugar in a bowl. Then add the cold vegan butter and water and knead into a dough. Then divide into 2 portions.

Tip: Always keep the shortcrust pastry and the tart pan cool to ensure the dough does not become too soft and sticky!

Step 2: Shape the crust and fill with jam

Roll out one portion of dough on a piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Then place in a tart or springform pan, pressing down evenly and spread the jam on top.

Now roll out the other portion of dough and cut into strips or cut out designs with a cookie cutter. Then place on top of the jam and carefully press down the ends to seal the edges.

Tip: If you want to bake the Linzer Torte later, you can store it in the refrigerator after assembling. Leftover dough can be used to make cookies.

Step 3: Put almonds on top and bake!

Finally, brush the pastry with some dairy-free cream (mixed with a pinch of turmeric). Sprinkle the outer sides of the tart with some slivered almonds and bake the Linzer tart for about 25-30 minutes at 355 °F (180 °C). Then remove and allow to cool completely.

How to store Linzer Torte

The classic Linzer tart is perfect to make ahead, as it keeps for a very long time. Just like Christmas cookies, you can store them for weeks. Packed airtight and stored in a cool, dry place, the tart will keep for at least 2 weeks. Actually, it tastes even better if you let it sit for a few days before serving.

Make ahead Tip

You can prepare the dough in advance and store it wrapped in foil in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freeze it for up to 3 months. To thaw, simply place it in the refrigerator overnight. If it is too hard when chilled, simply leave it on your counter for a few minutes until it softens a bit.

Notes when making Gluten-free pastry

If you are replacing the regular flour with gluten-free flour, I recommend adding an extra flax egg to help the dough be less crumbly. To do this, stir 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds into 3 tablespoons of hot water and let swell for about 5 minutes. Instead of the flax egg, you can also use 4 tablespoons of applesauce.

This vegan Linzer Torte is:

Dairy-free
Egg-less
Can be made gluten-free
Quick and easy
Moist and fruity
With a crispy coolie-like crust
Totally delicious!
Like the pastry from the bakery
The perfect afternoon cake for coffee time in autumn and winter!
Ideal for Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays!

More vegan Christmas recipes to try:

Looking for more easy vegan baking recipes for the holidays? Here are a few favorite recipes from my Christmas bakery:

Vanilla CrescentCookies
Gingerbread Cookies
Linzer Cookies (Spitzbuben)
Cinnamon Rolls
Pecan Pie Bars
Nut Corners
Apple Cake
Mini Apple Pies
Pumpkin Pie
Chocolate Cookie Butter Cake
Cranberry Vanilla Cake
Apple Crumble Cake with Custard
Blood Orange Bundt Cake
Pumpkin Bread
Chocolate Pumpkin Bread
Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies

If you try this recipe for an easy vegan Linzer Torte, feel free to leave me a comment and a star rating! And if you share a photo of your delicious tart on Instagram, please tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka because I love seeing your creations! Happy baking! 🙂

Vegan Linzer Tart

Author: Bianca Zapatka

This classic vegan Linzer Torte is quick and easy to make without eggs and dairy butter and is as delicious as the original recipe from Austria! It's fruity, moist, nutty, fabulously delicious and lasts for a long time! The perfect dessert for Advent and Christmas!

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Ingredients

Shortcrust pastry

2 ½ cup (300 g) flour all-purpose, spelt or gluten-free flour*
1 cup (125 g) ground hazelnuts or almond flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of gingerbread spice or cardamom or cloves (optional)
½ cup (120 g) raw cane sugar or other sugar
5.3 oz (150 g) vegan butter cold & cut into small cubes
6 tbsp cold water

Filling + Topping

¾ cup (250 g) red jam variety of your choice or homemade compote*
2 tbsp dairy-free cream or dairy-free milk
pinch of turmeric optional for color
3 tbsp slivered almonds

Instructions

*Note: Feel free to check out the recipe video and step-by-step photos in the blog post above! Also, I recommend using the metric measurements.

Grease a 10-Inch (25.5-cm) tart or springform pan and place it in the freezer for a few minutes (if the pan is pre-cooled, the dough will also stay cool once you press it in).
Whisk together the flour, ground hazelnuts, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and sugar in a bowl. Then add the cold vegan butter and water and knead everything with your hands (or use a food processor) to form a smooth dough. Then divide the dough into 2 portions and shape each into a flat ball.
Wrap one portion tightly in plastic wrap (to use for the lattice later) and place in the refrigerator until further use.
Roll out the other portion on a piece of cling film or parchment paper as shown in the step-by-step pictures or in the video. Then place in the prepared tart or springform pan and press down evenly on the bottom and sides.
Spread the jam over the bottom of the crust, then set the tart aside (preferably in the fridge to ensure the dough does not become too soft).
Preheat the oven to 355 °F (180 °C).
Meanwhile, take the other portion of dough out of the fridge and roll it out on a piece of cling film or parchment paper, then cut into strips. Place the dough strips, evenly spaced, on top of the jam to form a lattice, and gently press down the edges to seal. (You can roll out the remaining dough again. Then cut out designs with a cookie cutter and place them on the lattice or just bake cookies).
Brush the dough with a little dairy-free cream (mixed with a pinch of turmeric). Then sprinkle the outer sides of the tart with some slivered almonds. Bake the Linzer Torte for about 25-30 minutes. Then remove and allow to cool completely.
Enjoy!

Notes

If your baking pan has a different size, you can adjust the ingredient amount using my baking pan converter.
Gluten-free dough: you can substitute gluten-free 1 to 1 baking flour. I then recommend adding an additional flaxseed egg to help the dough hold together(stir 1 tbsp of ground flaxseed into 3 tbsp of hot water and let swell for about 5 minutes).
Jam: I like to use low-sugar red currant or raspberry jam. However, you can also make homemade compote from frozen berries (see the fruit filling recipe of my raspberry almond cake).
Make ahead: You can prepare the dough in advance and store it wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freeze it for up to 3 months. To thaw, simply place it in the refrigerator overnight. If it is too hard when chilled, just leave it on your counter for a few minutes.
Storage: The Linzer Torte will keep for at least 2 weeks if wrapped airtight.
More information about the recipe is mentioned in the blog post above!

Nutritions

Nutrition is calculated automatically and should be used as estimate.

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