Soft Almond Imperial Cookies

I'm totally loving these cookies right now.  They are tiny, soft pillows that seem to dissolve away in your mouth with the first bite. 

I first tried to make a variation of these cookies a few weeks ago.  The flavor was amazing, and the cookies were crisp and delicate, but they were incredibly ugly.  The edges were raggedy and prone to over-browning, and the dough was soft and difficult to work with even when it was chilled.

So, I decided to increase the flour amount and see what would happen.  The end result:  soft almond imperials.  Sure, they're not crispy, but there is something about their softness that just pulls you in.  I asked Scott if they were cloud-like (ok, cut me some slack; I was looking for a way to describe the texture) and he replied that maybe if clouds rained butter they would taste like these cookies.  That's good enough for me. 

Notes:
These cookies are a perfect ingredient match for mudslide cookies since soft almond imperials use 4 egg yolks and mudslide cookies use 4 egg whites.  Keep in mind that egg yolks don't keep well once they are separated from the whites.  The whites, on the other hand, can be kept refrigerated until the next day without any problems if you're not up to making two batches of dough in one day or in the mood for a four-egg white omelet.  This dough freezes well. You can make it, shape it into a disc, wrap it, freeze it, and then bake it when you have the time.  If you want to make these cookies look a bit fancier, drizzle some melted chocolate over the top, or dip the tops in melted chocolate.  

Adapted from The Cookie Jar

Ingredients:
¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ cup granulated sugar
4 egg yolks (~5 tablespoons), well beaten
½ teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
zest of 1 lemon
⅛ teaspoon salt
1½ cups all-purpose flour

Yields 5-6 dozen cookies

Mix and Chill:
Cream the butter until is light and fluffy.  Gradually add the sugar with the mixer running and beat until it is fully mixed.  Add the yolks to the butter mixture in three stages, beating until each addition is fully incorporated.  Scrape the bowl and beater well, and beat in the almond and vanilla extracts, lemon zest, and salt.  Add the flour in halves to the butter/egg mixture, and beat until no more flour streaks remain.  Shape the dough into a disc, wrap it well with plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator for at least two hours to chill.

Bake:
Adjust the oven racks to the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350°F.  Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats.  Break off about a teaspoon-worth of dough (approximately 8 grams), roll it into a ball, and place it on the prepared cookie sheets, spacing the cookies two inches apart.  Once the sheets are full, place them in the oven, and bake at 350°F for 8-10 minutes until the bottoms of the cookies are golden brown, rotating the sheets halfway through baking.  Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheets, then transfer them to a rack to finish cooling.  Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. Pin It