Hi and thank you for taking a look at my cookies! I’m not a baker or chef; I’m an architect and artist that loves to bake. It’s like making art that you can share and enjoy.

Almond cookies recipe

This is a multi-purpose almond cookie recipe that can be used for cut out cookies, cookie bars or cookies baked in silicone molds. Lots of variations are possible – just look at the pictures 🙂

Ingredients

• 250 g of butter
• 200 g of sugar
• Two medium-sized eggs (approximately 70 g of egg)
• A dash of vanilla extract
• 1.5 grams of baking powder (a very small amount)
• A pinch of salt
• 125 g of ground almonds
• Wheat all purpose flour, as needed. It’s typically around 550 g.

Preparation of the dough

Beat together the partially melted butter and sugar (by hand or using a mixer).

• Add the eggs.
• Add the vanilla, salt, and ground almonds.
• Mix everything thoroughly.
• Add 500 g of flour and the baking powder. If the dough is too soft, add more flour, up to 550 g. Do not overmix.

Shaping the Cookies

I roll out the dough at this point between two sheets of plastic wrap or one of plastic wrap and one of parchment paper. I place it in the fridge until it’s firm, and then I cut out the cookies using cookie cutters. They don’t spread when baking and maintain their shape.

Alternatively, you can place the freshly made dough in silicone cookie molds. They can be baked directly in the molds.

These shaped cookies, about 6 mm thick, bake for 12 minutes at 180ºC (approximately 350ºF). They should be slightly soft when removed from the oven because they firm up as they cool. They don’t brown too much.

To make large cookies (I call them galletones), you place the dough in a metal tart mold like the ones in the picture. These large cookies are baked at 180°C (approximately 350°F) for approximately 15 minutes if they are about 1 cm thick.

Alternatively, you can roll out the dough on parchment paper in one piece and bake it on a baking tray, like cookie bars. Start with 15 minutes at 180°C and check if it’s slightly golden brown (depending on their thickness).

In both cases, it’s best to cut the cookies when they are lukewarm, before they cool down completely. Never while hot, as they tend to crumble.

Another option to shape the cookies is to form a cylinder or rectangle with the freshly made dough, wrap it in plastic wrap, and chill it in the refrigerator until it hardens. Then, you can cut it with a sharp knife and bake.

The dough can be stored in the refrigerator, unbaked, til next day, wrapped in plastic wrap or a plastic bag. It can also be frozen.

Shortbread cookies recipe

Ingredients

• 250 g of butter
• 200 g of sugar
• Two medium-sized eggs (approximately 70 g of egg)
• A dash of vanilla extract
• 1.5 grams of baking powder (a very small amount)
• A pinch of salt
• Flour, as needed. It’s usually around 500 g.

Preparation of the dough

• Beat together the partially melted butter and sugar (by hand or using a mixer).
• Add the eggs.
• Add the vanilla and salt.
• Mix everything thoroughly.
• Add 475 g of flour and the baking powder. If the dough is too soft, add more flour, up to approximately 500 g. Do not overmix.

Shaping the cookies

See almond cookies.

Variation: cookies with pistachio and royal icing

On top of an almond cookie base (raw), we add chopped pistachios and press them onto the dough so that they stick. Since the pistachios are raw, we place small pieces of butter on top and bake it at 180°C (approximately 350°F) for 15 minutes.

Once baked and still warm, we prepare a royal icing with lemon juice and drizzle it over using a disposable piping bag (without a nozzle) or with a dessert spoon. We cut the cookie before it cools completely.

Royal icing is made with egg white, powdered sugar, and a pinch of salt. I prefer to buy a ready-made royal icing mix from Azucren, which includes dehydrated egg white and sugar, and you only need to add water or lemon juice. It’s very convenient because you can make a small quantity. There are many brands that offer this royal icing mix, like Wilton.

Here’s a recipe for royal icing by the great Pioneer Woman.

Variation: cookies covered with chocolate

Just melt some chocolate or candy melts and cover the cookie.

The one on the left is covered with candy melts.

This galletón is covered with a melted milk chocolate bar with hazelnuts.

Variation: cookies covered with lemon royal icing

This galletón was covered with lemon royal icing, tinted in yellow, and yellow Lacasitos (spanish M&M’s).

Variation: cookies with jam

This one is awesome, I tell you. And so easy to do.

On top of a raw cookie base, spread some jam (these are strawberry and apricot jams). Then crumble pieces of dough on top. These large cookies are baked at 180°C (approximately 350°F) for approximately 15 minutes if they are about 1 cm thick. Add 5 more minutes at the time if they are thicker. It tends to be 20 minutes for mine.

Variation: cookies with pinneaple jam and lemon royal icing

On top of an almond cookie bar (raw), spread pinneaple jam. Bake the cookie and once it is baked, spread lemon royal icing on top. Cut while warm.

Lots of cookie pictures and some notes

Cut-out cookies in the shape or snowflakes, hearts, gingerbread men… I added ginger and orange zest to those men, by the way.

These cookies are great for Christmas

A couple years ago, I baked an insane amount of holiday-themed cookies for an event. All of the cookies, except for the “polvorones” (which are a spanish holiday treat) are made with the same cookie dough recipes shared earlier in this post. I decorated the cookies with candy melts, chocolate, nuts, candied cherries, many many nuts, gold edible spray, sprinkles…

The cookies cooling on the cookie rack on the far left were shaped using a silicone mold for madeleines.

Cookies of different kinds in the making:

And the final result after arranging these in serving trays:

I hope this post inspires your creativity and your love for all things homemade.

• Rosana