Bake-N-Blog: Holiday Edition - Party On!

I hope everyone’s finished doing their baking, because it’s time to blog! In case you’re wondering what I’m talking about, here’s what Bake-N-Blog: Holiday Edition is about in a nutshell: Each blogger who signed up for Bake-N-Blog selected a Christmas cookie from Food Blogga, whipped up a batch of the cookies, taste-tested them (isn’t that the whole point of baking?!), and today everyone is blogging about their cookies. It’s a great way for everyone to try out a new recipe, and maybe some of them will be great new additions to our Christmas baking repertoires :-)

A great big THANK YOU to Staci at Staci Edwards Blog for coming up with the idea for the original Bake-N-Blog! I hope this one is much fun and as successful as the first one!

All participants are linking to their Bake-N-Blog posts at the end of this post. Be sure to make the rounds and check them all out.

When I saw this picture of Swedish Almond Wafers, I remembered that my mom made the same thing {or something very similar} years ago. The recipe looked relatively easy and I had all the ingredients on hand, so I decided these were my cookies!

Here’s the recipe from Michelle at Culinography via Food Blogga (adapted from The Complete Cookie Book).

Swedish Almond Wafers

3/4 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons light cream
2 dashes ground cinnamon

{If you need an excuse to get an iPad, it makes a great recipe book!}

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Lightly grease (or line with silpats) two large baking sheets. {I have no idea what silpats are, I just used parchment paper on my baking sheets.}

In a food processor, process almonds until very finely ground (do not over-grind or they’ll form a paste).

Add sugar and pulse a few more times to break down the sugar to a superfine consistency and ensure the almonds are evenly ground.

 

Combine the almond mixture, butter, flour, salt, cream and cinnamon in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan.

Cook over medium heat until butter is melted and the batter is smooth. Remove from heat.

Drop by scant teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheet, 3-4 inches apart (the cookies will spread a lot).

Bake 3-5 minutes, until lightly brown at the edges and bubbling in the center. {The cookies expand and bubble like a freaky science experiment while they’re baking – very cool!}

Remove baking sheet to wire rack and cool slightly.

When edges are firm enough to lift, use a thin spatula {I sprayed mine with a bit of Pam} to remove cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

 

Repeat with remaining batter, cooling (and regreasing if necessary) baking sheet between each batch. {I reheated the batter a couple of times, because it got thicker as it cooled and didn’t drop easily onto the baking sheet.}

Cookies should be stored in airtight containers with wax paper between layers. They are *very* fragile.

And the final verdict? YUMMY! These cookies are so light and thin, which I think makes them the perfect little bite of sweetness after a big Christmas meal. I think you could dress them up in a lot of ways too – you could drizzle on some white or dark chocolate after the cookies cool, maybe some sprinkles, add some lemon, lime, or orange zest to the batter to give it a citrussy zing… maybe even use a different kind of nut.

I hope everyone else’s recipes were successful too :-) I can’t wait to start the virtual taste test!

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If you’re participating in Bake-N-Blog: Holiday Edition, use Linky Tool below to add the link to your post.

1. Click Click here to enter.
2. In the Link title or Blog title box, type your name and/or blog name and the name of your cookie.
3. In the Link box, type the URL for your Bake-N-Blog post {not your actual blog address}.
4. Click the Enter your link button.

If you have any trouble uploading your link, shoot me an e-mail and I’ll try to help you out. If all else fails, you can leave a comment with the link to your cookie post. Make sure you visit all the participants so you can see what they baked and read their reviews!

PARTY ON!