Almond Cookies
Contributed by Kim D
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature and slightly softened (I used unsalted but salted is fine)
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (can replace 1/2 cup with almond flour)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 Tablespoons milk
1/2 cup sliced almonds
Preheat oven to 325 F.
Put sugar and butter into a mixing bowl. Beat until fluffy. Add egg and almond extract and beat well.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to the bowl and mix on low until blended.
Divide dough into fourths. Form each into a 12" roll.
Place two rolls 4 to 5" apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
Flatten till 3" wide. Repeat with remaining rolls on another sheet.
Brush flattened rolls with milk and sprinkle with almonds.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until edges are thinking about turning golden brown. (Recipe says 12-14 minutes. Mine took 15 minutes.) They should be set but still soft.
While the cookies bake, make the almond icing.
Almond Icing:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1+ T milk, divided
1/4 t almond extract
Put the powdered sugar in a small bowl. Add 1 T milk and almond extract and stir until smooth. If it’s too stiff for drizzling, add more milk, by tiny amounts. You want to icing to drizzle, not plop.
While cookies are still warm, cut them crosswise at a diagonal into 1" strips with a sharp knife.
Cool on wire rack.
Drizzle when cool with Almond Icing.
Notes: For dairy free, replace butter with margarine and replace milk with almond milk.
- If you want to be less fussy, you can make these without shaping into bars. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Dump the dough onto the sheet and pat it with floured fingers until it almost fills the sheet. Bake a little longer (18 minutes?) until set and barely starting to color at the edges.
