I came up with this recipe after I baked an almond cake from a recipe a friend shared. The nice thing about almond flour is that it’s gluten free and you do not need as much butter as you would using all purpose flour. The texture is chewy and cakey. If you want a little crunch, try adding a few chopped almonds! They are easy to make and nice enough to be served as a dessert with ice cream or fresh fruit. Or try them as an afternoon snack with a cold glass of milk, hot chocolate or some hot tea. We had ours with ice cream and a little dulce de leche. Yum!
Makes about 20-24 cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp Cointreau (or other orange liquor)
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions:
- Heat oven to 350º F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Add the butter and sugar to a bowl and beat with an electric mixture until it looks like cake crumbs, about 2 – 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating each time until blended and smooth. Add the almond and vanilla extracts, the Cointreau (or orange liquor) and the lemon zest.
- In a separate bowl, sift the almond flour and all-purpose flour. Add the baking powder, salt, and cinnamon, whisk to mix.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and blend gently but thoroughly.
- Scoop the cookie dough using a 2 Tbsp measure or a soup spoon, making mounds that are about 2 1/2″ in circumference (like the size of small meatballs). I use a small ice cream scoop I have, that is a bit larger than a melon baller.
- Place the mounds of cookie dough on the parchment lined sheets and bake for 12-17 minutes, until the edges are golden to your liking.
- Once removed from the oven, allow them to sit on the cookie sheet for 3-5 minutes. Place the cookies on a cooling rack, leaving the cookie sheet under the rack, and dust them with powdered sugar. They’ll keep covered for up to 5 days.
Note: Almond flour keeps well in the freezer; store it in an air tight container. Also, it’s gluten free, so these are very easy to make GF! King Arthur has a gluten free all purpose flour that can be substituted for the all-purpose. I have not tried it, since we’re not sensitive at my house, but it’s an option for those of you who are.
On The Slab 