Almond Shortbread Sandwich Cookies Food

ALMOND SHORTBREAD I

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat butter with 1/2 cup sugar and almond extract until light and fluffy. With a wooden spoon, stir in flour until smooth and well combined. Divide dough into 2 parts. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• On lightly sugared surface, roll out dough, one part at a time, about 1/2-inch thick. Cut out cookies with a 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter. Place on ungreased cookie sheet 1 inch apart. Make an indentation in the center of each cookie with the end of a wooden spoon.
• Bake in preheated oven until cookies are light golden brown around the edges, 25 to 30 minutes. While still warm, roll in sugar. Cool completely on a wire rack. Store in an air-tight container.

ALMOND SHORTBREAD COOKIES (MANTECADITOS)

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix flour and nutmeg in medium bowl. Set aside. Beat butter, shortening, sugar and extracts in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually stir in flour mixture until well mixed. Dough should be slightly moist. If dough looks dry, sprinkle with water and work into dough. If dough is sticky, sprinkle with additional flour.
• 2. Spoon dough by teaspoons and shape into balls. Place on ungreased baking sheets. Gently flatten each ball with palm of hand. Press a cherry piece in the center of each cookie.
• 3. Bake 20 minutes or until golden. Cool on baking sheets 1 minute. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.

ALMOND SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the beaten egg and extract. Add the flour, ground almonds and lemon zest and mix until the dough comes together.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead into a ball. Divide the dough in half and then roll each half into a log, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap each log in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour (the dough can be frozen at this point for a later use).
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Remove the dough from the plastic wrap and slice into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Place the cookies onto the prepared baking sheets and bake until golden brown at the edges, about 15 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheets for 3 or 4 minutes before transferring to wire cooling racks to cool completely, or just eat warm from the oven.

MAPLE CREAM SANDWICH COOKIES

Steps:

• Cookies:In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and beat until combined, about 30 seconds. Add flour mixture and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down sides as necessary.
• Divide dough into four disks; wrap each in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out one disk of dough 1/8 inch thick, lightly dusting with flour to prevent sticking. Cut out cookies using a 4-inch maple-leaf-shaped cutter, dipping cutter in flour as needed. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets and freeze until firm, about 10 minutes. Repeat process with remaining dough.
• Bake, rotating halfway through, until edges begin to brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Filling:In the bowl of a electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter until light and fluffy. Add confectioners' sugar and maple syrup; beat until smooth. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip. Pipe 2 tablespoons filling onto bottoms of half the cookies, then sandwich with remaining cookies. Filled cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.