10.13.2010

bake: chocolate almond cookies

Happy Wednesday friends!  Todays amazing fall recipe comes from my sister Melanie.  She is by far one of the best bakers I know and the love and care she puts into all of her creations is really what makes them most special.  I'm happy to have her "here" sharing one of her favorites...


Fall is here.  It crept in slowly here in our corner of the Lou.  The trees are turning and soon I'll be able to drive on leaf filled streets and watch the colors fly out my back window.  The smell of wood smoke and fire pits are a weekend treat and apple cider and pumpkin bread will become our menu staples.  There is nothing quite like Fall.  It is my favorite season.  It means a kitchen full of children excited to see what new treat is being made for lunchboxes the next day.  It means crisp Saturday mornings outside watching children playing soccer.  And it means cookies.  These cookies.  The ones you're going to love me for.  They are going to change your life.  Promise.

My Chocolate Almond Cookies
AKA "Sweet Jesus Help Me"

In a large bowl cream 1 cup of EACH:  Butter, white sugar, and brown sugar.  Please don't use fake butter.  This isn't a margarine recipe.  It's the real thing.  If you have an aversion to real butter; we can't ever be friends.  R
eally, no amigas.
Beat in 2 eggs and 2 teaspoons of almond extract.  
Oh almond extract.  How I love thee.  I use it in my buttercream, added to cherries, peaches, or other fruit for cobblers/pies, a little in hot chocolate can be a substitute when you want an amaretto kick without the alcohol, or in pound cakes or cakes.  It's an obsession I tell you.  

Now if you have a stand mixer, just let it beat and walk away. You want it fluffy.  If you have a hand mixer, my deepest apologies.  Beat for about two minutes.  You want it to look like this:

In a bowl add 4 cups flour,  2 teaspoons of baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Add to our lovely creamed mixture.  Now start on low so you don't shoot flour all over yourself and half of the kitchen.  I speak from a wealth of experience on this.  It is not attractive to get flour up your nose.  I lose my dignity at that point.  Mix well and it will pull all the batter from the sides and give you an attractive lump of dough.  Go ahead. Take a pinch.  Okay, take another.  Okay, at this point you need to stop or you'll never get to the finished cookies which are worth it. 
In a small bowl pour 1/2 cup white granulated sugar. 
I have a lovely medium scoop from a kitchen supply store but you can also use your hands to make 2 inch balls.  Roll in the white sugar and place on a cookie sheet.  I'm in love with baking stones. They make the BEST cookies. I haven't found a cookie sheet yet that can compare with a baking stone.  Now look at these little nuggets.  They almost make my ovaries flinch they are that cute.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool on racks.  
Now for the Sweet Jesus part:
In a bowl melt a couple squares of chocolate.  You can use Ghiradelli, Godiva, Nestle, or heck even a Hershey's bar.  You can go milk, semi, or dark. If you buy the candy bars, buy an extra. My children prefer milk. They seem to disappear in our pantry when they are intended for baking.
Drizzle the melted chocolate onto the cookies.  We like to tweak ours every now and then and add some raspberry or blackberry preserves on top of the cookies as well.  We can't help going over board on variations.  It's our family motto: Go Big or Go Home.
And finally, Enjoy.  
See below the jump for the full recipe:



1 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp almond extract
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
white sugar 
chocolate

In mixing bowl cream butter and sugars. Beat in eggs and almond flavor.  Beat until fluffy.  In smaller bowl combine flour, baking soda, and salt.  Add to creamed mixture.  Mix until dough forms.  Roll into 2 inch balls and roll into white sugar.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool on wire racks.  Drizzle with chocolate.  



Thanks Melanie!!!!
{Images: Melanie Wiginton}

8 comments:

Unknown said...

OMG, these look so "need to make these right now" good!

domestic dish said...

YUM. I am So making these!

Ana Degenaar said...

Oh my! Yummy is not enough! Those look so amazing, I need one today! Thanks Melanie, you've made my day!

Estelle Hayes said...

Michelle, you are killing me with this series. Seriously, I hate talking about weight. I know it's tacky but I've gained 10 pounds this year and this is not helping! Now I need to go bake these cookies.

Heather Feemster said...

Yummy!! I want to try these pronto!

Suzanne Anas Jurich said...

Love the "Sweet Jesus" part!! I need to make these soon! Yummy!

Avril said...

Hello there yumminess!!! Goodness, do I just LOVE anything flavored with almond! - and then topped with "Sweet Jesus" chocolate....wowsers! Thank goodness for such wonderful recipes from sisters!!!! :-)

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