Almond Spice Cookies # 2
Submitted by nin40
Almond spice cookies with allspice, orange zest, and ground almonds in a tender cake-flour dough. Brushed with egg glaze for shine, these bake up delicately spiced and shortbread-soft.
YIELD
24 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
10 minREADY
30 minThe flavor combination is what makes these almond spice cookies stand out. Allspice and orange zest hit your nose first, with toasted almond underneath and a faint, glossy crackle on top from the egg-and-salt glaze brushed on before baking. The taste leans more European tea cookie than American spice drop.
Cake flour instead of all-purpose is the structural choice that defines the texture. Lower protein means less gluten, which translates to a sandy, melt-in-the-mouth crumb that shatters cleanly under teeth instead of bending.
The recipe leans on allspice more aggressively than most cookie formulas, and the spice carries the full warmth of clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a single ingredient. Paired with fresh orange zest, the spice loses any Christmas-y heaviness and reads more like a Mediterranean shortbread.
The egg-salt glaze is worth the small extra step. Beyond the gloss, the salt sharpens the spice and the egg gives the surface a golden-brown lacquer that makes these look professional on a tray. Ground almonds folded into the dough add a faint nutty backbone that comes through more clearly the day after baking.
Pro Tips
- Cream the butter and sugar until visibly lighter in color. Underbeating leaves the cookies dense rather than tender.
- Brush the glaze on in a thin even coat. Too much pools and bakes into shiny patches; too little misses the gloss.
- Pull the cookies when the edges are pale gold and the centers still look matte. They firm up as they cool on the sheet.
- Save any leftover glaze in the fridge for up to five days. It works well on biscuits, scones, or other cookies needing a wash.
Variations
- Swap the orange zest for lemon and the allspice for cardamom for a Scandinavian-style cookie.
- Add finely chopped candied orange peel to the dough for chewy bursts of citrus.
- Press a single whole almond into each cookie before glazing for a rustic finish.
Ingredients
Directions
Combine flour and ⅛ teaspoons salt on sheet of waxed paper.
Set aside.
Cream sugar, butter and orange zest in mixer until light and fluffy.
Add egg yolk and combine well. On low speed, add flour mixture, allspice and almonds.
Mix well.
Use 1 tablespoon dough per cookie, spacing them 2 inches apart on greased baking sheet.
Gently flatten dough with fingers into 2-inch rounds.
Froth egg and remaining ⅛ teaspoons salt with fork in small bowl.
Lightly brush glaze over cookies.
(Remaining glaze can be refrigerated up to 5 days and used in other baking).
Bake at 350 until cookies are lightly browned around edges, about 11 to 12 minutes.
Cool 5 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Store at room temperature in airtight tin for up to a week or freeze up to a month, wrapped airtight (thaw at room temperature in wrapping).
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