Almond Flour Chinese Almond Cookies

Ingredients

- 1-3/4 cup of sifted all purpose wheat flour
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1-1/4 cups of almond flour
- 1 cup of chilled unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon of almond extract
- 1/2 cup of slivered almonds
EGG WASH TOPPING:
- 1 large egg white

Instructions

Mix together the sifted flour, sugar, and baking soda. Cut the chilled unsalted butter into 1/2 inch cubes and place it in a separate bowl from the dry ingredients. Using two knives or the type of pastry blender used to mix pie crusts, mix the almond flour, and salt with the butter cubes until the mixture resembles cornmeal (do not mix it too much because the small pieces are what make the cookies flakey). Mix in the dry ingredients, mixing only until the flour is no longer dry. Spread out a large sheet of plastic wrap and flatten the cookie dough on the wrap until it is about 1 inch thick. Cover tightly and chill until hard. This chilling hardens the pieces of butter, which is another technique to make the cookies flakey.

AT BAKING TIME: Preheat the Oven to 325 degrees F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Form the dough into 1/2 inch balls and place them on a cookie sheet about one inch apart. press each ball into a one inch circle and press four slivered almonds into the top of each cookie. Brush the top of each almond studded cookie with the egg white. Bake the cookies about 15 minutes, or until they are golden and crisp around the edges.