Chinese Almond Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup almond flour (Toast before using)
• 1.25 cup all-purpose flour
• 0.5 tsp baking soda
• 0.5 tsp fine sea salt
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter (Softened)
• 4 tbsp vegetable shortening (Softened; shortening is preferred over lard)
• 0.75 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg (At room temperature if possible)
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 24 whole almonds (One almond for topping each cookie)

Steps

1. 1

   Position oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350°F (180°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. 2

   Place the almond flour in a dry skillet over medium heat. Toast, stirring frequently, until fragrant and lightly golden, about 3 to 5 minutes. Immediately transfer it to a bowl; do not leave it in the hot skillet, where residual heat can scorch it. Let cool until barely warm.

3. 3

   In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt.

4. 4

   In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat the softened butter, shortening, and sugar on low speed just until smooth and combined. Do not whip the mixture; incorporating as little air as possible helps limit spreading.

5. 5

   Add the egg and almond extract to the fat mixture. Beat on low speed just until incorporated, scraping down the bowl as needed.

6. 6

   Add the cooled toasted almond flour and beat briefly on low speed until evenly distributed.

7. 7

   Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed just until no dry streaks remain. Stop mixing as soon as a soft dough forms.

8. 8

   Divide the dough into 24 equal portions, about 1 tablespoon each. Roll each portion into a ball and arrange the balls on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.

9. 9

   Gently flatten each dough ball into a thick disk. Press one whole almond into the center of each cookie.

10. 10

    Bake until the edges are lightly golden and the centers are still somewhat soft, about 10 to 12 minutes, rotating and switching the baking sheets halfway through for even baking.

11. 11

    Leave the cookies on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes to firm slightly, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. The edges should become delicately crisp while the centers remain slightly yielding.

Notes

The cookies are best on the day they are baked, when the edges are crisp and the centers are yielding. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days; the texture will become more uniform over time. The source recipe was behind a membership paywall, so ingredient quantities and procedure are reconstructed estimates rather than directly extracted.

Nutrition per serving

• dessert
• cookies
• baked
• Chinese-American
• almond
• Chinese New Year
• celebration
• vegetarian