I know it's latke season and doughnut season. But in the larger world out there it's also cookie season.
Well, actually, for me it is always cookie season. When I was a kid my Mom baked cookies all the time and when we got home from school we had milk and cookies every day. That was the snack -- before the days of chips (potato, kale or otherwise in little bags) and frozen pizza.
My brothers taught me how to dunk.
So when cookie season comes around I feel nostalgic. Sure, I make the old family favorites. Fannies. Peanut butter cookies. Chocolate Chunk Grand Finale cookies.
But occasionally I try something new. I'm not always happy with the results and most often I discard the recipe.
But these were wonderful. And also perfect for dunking.
Swiss Chocolate Almond Cookies
- 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 cups finely ground almonds (8 ounces)
- 2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
- 3/4 cup sugar plus 2 tablespoons sugar for rolling
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or 1/2 teaspoon orange extract)
In a food processor, pulse the chocolate until almost ground. Add the cocoa powder, cinnamon, salt and cloves and process on pulse to incorporate the ingredients until finely ground and well mixed. Place the mixture into a bowl, add the ground almonds and mix to blend the ingredients thoroughly.
In the bowl of an electric beater, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add the 3/4 cup sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold in the extract and the chocolate-almond mixture.
Sprinkle a sheet of parchment paper with the 2 tablespoons sugar. Place the dough on top of the sugar. Place another piece of parchment paper on top. Roll or press the dough to a thickness of about 1/4 to 3/8 inch. Remove the top piece of parchment paper. Let the unbaked cookies air dry for at least 1-1/2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Cut out circles or shapes with a cookie cutter. Place the cut out cookies on the parchment paper, leaving room between each cookie for them to spread. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Let cookies cool on the sheet for 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes about 36 cookies