A traditional recipe from Basel, Switzerland, these are a cutout chocolate almond spice cookie.
Ingredients
1-1/2 cups almonds
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
6 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
2 egg whites
additional granulated sugar
Directions
- In a food processor, process the almonds and sugars until the almonds are powder-fine but not oily; stop the processor and scrape down the sides several times. Add chocolate and mix until fine, being careful to not overmix and cause the chocolate to heat up and melt. Add spices and egg whites and mix until dough forms a mass. Chill dough for about 1/2 hour. Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Generously dust a work surface with powdered sugar. Roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut with a 2 inch heart-shaped cookie cutter (hearts are traditional, but you can cut them to any shape you want). Place cookies on baking sheet and dust with additional granulated sugar. Put cookies into the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 325 F. Bake for 15 minutes or until firm.
- The amount of cookies this recipe yields depends on the size of your cookie cutters.
