Spanish-Style Braised Chicken and Almonds

 

8 (5- to 7-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed
Salt and pepper
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
⅓ cup apple cider vinegar

⅓ cup water
1 cup chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and chopped fine
2 hard-cooked large eggs, yolks and whites separated, whites chopped fine
½ cup slivered almonds, toasted
Pinch saffron threads, crumbled
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1½ tsp. lemon juice

 

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300°. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown thighs, 5 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer thighs to plate and pour off all but 2 teaspoons fat from skillet.

Add onion and ¼ teaspoon salt to fat left in skillet and cook over medium heat until just softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in two-thirds of garlic, bay leaf, and cinnamon and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in vinegar and water; cook, scraping up any browned bits, until it starts to thicken, about 2 minutes. Stir in broth and tomatoes and bring to simmer. Nestle thighs into skillet, cover, and transfer to oven. Cook until chicken registers 195 degrees, 45 to 50 minutes.

Using potholders, remove skillet from oven. Being careful of hot skillet handle, transfer thighs to serving platter, discard skin, and tent loosely with aluminum foil.

Discard bay leaf. Transfer ¾ cup cooking liquid, egg yolks, almonds, saffron, and remaining garlic to blender. Process until smooth, about 2 minutes, scraping down sides of jar as needed. Return almond mixture to skillet along with 1 tablespoon parsley and lemon juice. Bring to simmer over medium heat and cook, whisking frequently, until sauce has thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over chicken and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley and egg whites. Serve.

This recipe can be found here.

Almond Roca Bars

 

1 cup butter

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. almond extract

¼ tsp. salt

2 cups flour

½ cup chopped almonds

1½ cups semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips

 

Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9x13 baking dish.

In a large bowl, beat the butter with the white and brown sugar until fluffy. Add egg, almond extract, and salt and mix until combined. Add the flour and mix thoroughly. Spread mixture into the prepared pan.

Bake for 13-15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Sprinkle bars generously with chocolate chips immediately after baking and let them sit to melt. You can stick the pan back into the oven for a couple of minutes to speed this up. Once chips have melted, spread the chocolate evenly on top and sprinkle with almonds.

Cool and cut.

This recipe can be found here.

Lemon Almond Crumble Bars

 

3 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

1 cup butter

1 large egg

1 cup chopped almonds

 

Lemon Filling:

14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

4 Tbsp. lemon zest (zest of 2-3 lemons)

½ cup fresh lemon juice (about 3-4 lemons)

2 large egg yolks

 

Preheat oven to 375°. Line a 13x9-inch baking dish with parchment paper or foil and grease with cooking spray.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter one Tbsp. at a time and mix until the ingredients resemble fine crumbs. Add the egg and mix until incorporated.

Press 2/3 of the mixture onto the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes or until the crust is starting to lightly brown.

While crust is baking, mix together the sweetened condensed milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, and egg yolks. Gently pour over the semi-cooked crust while still warm. Spread evenly with a spatula.

Crumble the remaining crust evenly over the top of the lemon filling. (Squeeze crumbs together in hands for bigger chunks.) Sprinkle almonds on top. Bake at 375° for an additional 20-25 minutes until the top is lightly brown and the filling is set in the center.

Cool on a rack to room temperature. Then chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours or until cold. Lift bars out of the pan. Cut and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Recipe adapted from here

Churro Almond White Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

¾ cup salted butter

2 cups almonds

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

¾ tsp. kosher salt

1 cup dark brown sugar

½ cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 Tbsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. almond extract

2 cups white chocolate chips

 

Churro Topping

½ cup granulated sugar

1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

Instructions

Place butter into a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook and swirl butter in pan to melt butter. Continue to swirl pan while butter bubbles and cooks. Watch carefully as butter browns. When butter is brown, carefully pour into a heat-proof bowl, scraping brown bits from pan too. Let butter cool for 30 minutes.

Toast almonds and let cool.  Chop into bite-sized pieces.

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

Preheat oven to 330°. Place brown butter into a large mixing bowl. Stir in sugars, stirring until well combined. Add eggs and extracts stirring until well combined. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt. Stir until dough forms then add white chocolate chips and almonds stirring until combined.

Place sugar and cinnamon into a shallow bowl, stir to combine.

Scoop cookie dough with a medium-size cookie scoop and gently roll into churro topping. Place onto baking sheet 1 inch apart and bake for 10-11 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes before transferring to a serving plate.

This recipe can be found here.

Cinnamon Chip Almond Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars

 

2¾ cups flour
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 cup butter 
1½ cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped almonds
1 cup cinnamon chips 
2 Tbsp. sugar + 1½ tsp. cinnamon
Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
¼ tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. milk

 Preheat oven to 350°.  Line 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan with foil and spray with vegetable oil.

 Whisk together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Set aside.

 Toast almonds and set aside.

Cream together butter and sugar in large mixing bowl until fluffy.  Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, and mix until combined. Gradually add in flour mixture. Stir in the almonds and cinnamon chips.

Spread two-thirds of the cookie dough in prepared pan. Then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Add the rest of the dough in dollops on top of the cinnamon sugar.

Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until set and slightly golden brown. Cool about 10 minutes in pan on wire rack.

Glaze:

While bars are cooling, whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Drizzle glaze over still warm bars. Cool completely in pan.

This recipe can be found here.

M&M Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

¾ cup light brown sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

3¼ cups flour

¼ tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup mini M&Ms

1 cup almonds, chopped

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir and set aside.

Toast almonds, if desired.

Melt butter. Place in mixing bowl while still warm, add both sugars and mix on low until combined. Let sit to cool for a few minutes.

Mix in vanilla. Next, add eggs, one at a time.  Add flour mixture and mix until combined. Add chocolate chips, M&Ms, and chopped almonds; stir to combine.

Chill for 30 minutes to one hour, until cooled.

Use tablespoon size cookie scoop to place on baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes  Let cool for 5 minutes, and then remove from pans to cool completely.

This recipe can be found here.

Lemon Chip Cookies

 

2¼ cup flour

½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

½ cup shortening

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. lemon extract

1 cup lemon chips

½ cup chopped walnuts or almonds

½ cup butter

 

Preheat oven to 375°.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

Mix together shortening, butter and sugar. Add extract and eggs.  Add flour mixture.  Add chips and nuts.

Drop by tsp. onto cookie sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes.

 

This recipe can be found here.

Almond Toffee Squares

 

1½ cups flour

½ cup powdered sugar

¾ cup sliced almonds

1 cup cold butter

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (6-ounce) package milk chocolate English toffee bits

1 large egg

1 tsp. vanilla

 

Heat oven to 350°F.

Combine flour, sugar and ¼ cup almonds in bowl; cut in butter with pastry blender or fork until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press into ungreased 13x9-inch baking pan. Bake 15 minutes.

Combine sweetened condensed milk, toffee bits, egg and vanilla in bowl. Pour mixture over hot, partially baked crust. Top with remaining almonds. Continue baking 23-27 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely.

Cut into squares.

This recipe can be found here.

Lemon-Almond Cookies with Lemon Glaze

 

2¼ cups flour

½ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. kosher salt

¾ cup granulated sugar

2 Tbsps. grated lemon zest

1 cup butter

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

¼ tsp. almond extract

glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp. grated lemon zest

3 Tbsps. fresh lemon juice

¾ cup sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 350°.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar with lemon zest and rub together with your fingers until fragrant and combined. Combine the butter and sugar mixture and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and extracts, mixing until smooth. Beat in the flour on low speed until the mixture comes together into a dough.

Drop the dough by the Tbsp. onto the prepared baking sheets. Gently press down the dough with the palm of your hand.

Bake for 12 minutes, until the cookies are just set and slightly golden around the edges. Let cool on the sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Whisk the confectioner's sugar, lemon zest, and juice. Dip the tops of the cooled cookies into the glaze. Sprinkle sliced almonds on top. Let the cookies sit until the glaze has set, about 15 to 20 minutes. Store in an airtight container up to 3 days.

This recipe can be found here.

Caramel-Toffee 7-Layer Cookies

½ cup butter, melted

1½ cups graham cracker crumbs

1 cup caramel bits

1 cup bittersweet (dark) chocolate chips

1 cup toffee bits

1 can (14 Oz.) sweetened condensed milk

1 cup sliced almonds

1 pinch sea salt

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 11 x 7 baking pan. 

Stir together melted butter and graham cracker crumbs. Press into prepared pan. 

Add the other ingredients in order: caramel bits, chocolate chips, and toffee bits. Pour sweetened condensed milk over the top. Add the almonds. Sprinkle on a pinch or two of salt. 

Bake for 25–30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.  

This recipe can be found here.

Sweet-Salty Almond Chocolate Chippers

1 cup sliced almonds, toasted

6 Tbsp. butter, softened

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup packed brown sugar

¾ tsp. coarse sea salt

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. baking powder

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 cup dark or bittersweet chocolate pieces

Preheat oven to 350°.

Finely grind half of the almonds; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat butter on medium to high speed for 30 seconds.

Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, sea salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Beat until combined, scraping side of bowl occasionally.

Beat in egg and vanilla until combined.

Beat in flour and ground almonds until combined.

Using a wooden spoon, stir in chocolate pieces and the remaining sliced almonds.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Let cookies stand on cookie sheet for 1 minute. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool. 

This recipe can be found here.

Triple Almond Cookies

1 cup butter, softened

2 cup sugar

1 cup sifted powdered sugar

1 cup vegetable/canola oil

2 eggs

1 tsp almond extract or lemon extract

4½ cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cream of tartar

2 cups sliced almonds

1 (6oz) package toffee bits

Preheat oven to 350°.

Beat butter at medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar and powdered sugar, mixing well Add oil, eggs and almond extract, mix well.

Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cream of tartar. Add to butter mixture, mixing well. Stir in almonds and toffee bits.

Scoop cookies with a medium cookie scoop (2 Tbsp). Roll dough in granulated sugar and place on a parchment lined baking pan. Flatten cookies in a crisscross patter with a fork dipped in granulated sugar.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool slightly on pan and remove to wire rack to cool completely.

This recipe can be found here.

Almond Toffee Bars

1½ cups flour

½ cup powdered sugar

6 ounces sliced almonds (1 package)

1 cup cold butter

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (8-ounce) package toffee bits

1 cup mini chocolate chips

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1.   Preheat oven to 350°. Combine flour, sugar, and ¼ cup of almonds in a medium bowl. Cut in butter (I use a pastry cutter) until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Line a 9×13” baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray. Press butter mixture into the bottom of the pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

2.  Stir sweetened condensed milk, toffee bits, chocolate chips, egg, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Pour over hot, partially baked crust. Top with remaining almonds and continue baking 23-27 minutes until golden brown. Cool completely and cut into squares.

Yield: 36 bars

Crisp Almond Cookies

1½ cups butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsps. vanilla extract

2¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking power

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup finely chopped almonds

Cream together butter and sugars, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Add in eggs and vanilla and beat again.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture to dough, one third at a time until all added. Stir in almonds.

Using a small cookie scoop, place dough on a parchment lined baking sheet three inches apart (these cookies spread.) Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 8-9 minutes. Until edges turn golden.

Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to racks to cool completely.

This recipe can be found here.

Almond Toffee Sandies

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 cup powdered sugar

2 eggs

1 cup canola oil

1 tsp. almond extract

4½ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. salt

2 cups sliced almonds

1 package (8 ounces) toffee bits

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until blended. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in oil and extract. Combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in almonds and toffee bits.

Drop by teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool. Yield: 9 dozen.

This recipe can be found here.

Monster Cookies

§  2 sticks butter, softened 

§  1/2 cup sugar

§  1-1/2 cup brown sugar

§  2 eggs

§  1 Tbsp. vanilla

§  1-1/2 cup flour

§  1/2 tsp. baking soda

§  1 tsp. baking powder

§  2 tsp. kosher salt

§  1/2 cup oats 

§   1 cup chopped nuts (or more!)

§  2 cups chocolate chips

§  2-1/4 cups Rice Krispies

Preheat oven to 375°.

Cream butter with sugars until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat.

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt. Add to mixing bowl and mix till combined. After that, add in remaining ingredients in whatever quantity you prefer.

Add more nuts if you'd like, or add M & M's, peanut butter chips or white chocolate chips.  Be as creative as you want!

Add Rice Krispies at the very end, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix!

Use a cookie scoop to scoop balls of dough onto a cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown about 10 minutes, then allow to cool on a rack.

This recipe can be found here.

Party Time Cookies

1½ cups salted butter

2/3 cup sugar

2 tsp pure vanilla

½ tsp pure almond extract

2 cups flour

2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips

2 cups slivered almonds

Preheat oven to 350°

Cream butter and sugar together in medium bowl using an electric mixer set at medium speed.  Add extracts and beat well.  Scrape bowl.  Add flour, chocolate chips, and almonds, and blend on low speed until just combined.  Do not overmix.

Shape rounded tablespoonfuls into 1½ inch balls and place on ungreased baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Press balls with palm of hand or bottom of drinking glass into ½ thick rounds.

Bake 15-17 minutes or until cookies just begin to brown.  Transfer cookies to a cool, flat surface.  


(from Mrs. Field's Cookie Cookbook)

Almond Roca Cookies

2½ cups flour

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1 cup dark brown sugar

½ cup sugar

1 cup butter

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 pkg. toffee bits

1 cup coarsely ground almonds

4 oz milk chocolate (optional)

½ Tbsp vegetable oil (optional)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. 

Blend sugars together. Add butter and mix to form a grainy paste. Add eggs and vanilla and mix at medium speed until light and fluffy. 

At low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and then the toffee bits. Mix until just blended.

Place ground nuts in a small bowl. Using hands, roll balls of dough into 1 to 1 ½ inch balls, then roll in the ground nuts. 

Place on cookie sheets several inches apart. Bake 22 minutes.

(If desired) Melt the chocolate with the vegetable oil. Drizzle melted chocolate over cooled cookies. Place cookies on a cookie sheet and place in freezer or refrigerator until chocolate is firmly set.


from a Christmas cookie exchange

Almond Crunch Cookies

1 cup salted butter

1½ cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. pure almond extract

½ cup almonds, ground

2 cups almonds, sliced

2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350° 

Blend butter and sugar until a grainy paste.  Add eggs and extract.

Beat until light and fluffy at medium speed.  Add ground almonds and flour.

Blend at low speed until just mixed.

Form dough in 1½ inch balls and roll in sliced almonds.

Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 15 – 18 minutes.

Transfer to cool surface. 

(from Mrs. Field's Cookie Cookbook)