Almond Apricot Bars

These cookies are tart and tangy, and to put it simply, I love them.  The apricot filling is nice and thick, and the crust gives just the right amount of resistance when you bite into it.  I was pretty excited when I first got the cookbook I adapted this recipe from at a used book store outside of Albany. 

Reading it was kind of like bouncing on a diving board with lots of give, because it gave me so many ideas of other recipes that could be created based on the ones it contained.  For a few weeks, I dragged the book around with me, poring over the recipes and deciding what one to start with first.

At one point, Scott and I were visiting my parents, and I pulled the book out to show my mom.  She took one look at the cover, walked over to her collection of cookie books, and pulled the same one off the shelf!  Admittedly, I was a bit jealous when I saw she had paid $2 for her book at the used book sale when mine had cost $4.  Even though my 1970s cookbook wasn't so rare, at least it has some good ideas:  i.e., these cookies.
 

Notes:
I prefer to blanch the almonds the day before so that assembling the bar cookie and baking isn't overly time consuming.  If I'm making these on a whim, I start by blanching the almonds, then while the almonds cool on a plate after they've been toasted, I make the apricot filling.  By the time filling is cooked and set aside to cool, the almonds are ready to be ground and mixed into the crust/crumble.  Adding the granulated sugar to the almonds before you grind them will help to keep them from turning into almond paste.  Don't forget to take a cup of the crumbly mixture and set it aside to sprinkle on top of the cookies before they go in the oven. 

Adapted from the Better Homes and Gardens Homemade Cookies Cook Book

Apricot Filling Ingredients:
2½ cups chopped dried apricots
¼ cup honey
2 cups water
zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon almond extract

Crust and Crumble Ingredients:
¾ cup blanched almonds, lightly toasted and cooled
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup powdered sugar, sifted
½ teaspoon almond extract
¼ teaspoon vanilla

Yields about 48 1x2-inch bars, but they can be cut smaller if you'd like

Cook the Filling:
Place the apricots, honey, and water in a medium-sized pan.  Bring to a boil, and cook the mixture, stirring regularly, until it is thick and jammy (about 10 minutes).  Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, and almond extract, and set the mixture aside to cool.

Grind, Mix, Reserve, Press, Spread, Sprinkle, Bake:
Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350°F.  Line a 9x13-inch pan with a piece of foil, leaving a two-inch overhang at each end, and set aside.  Place the cooled toasted almonds and granulated sugar in a food processor, and pulse until the almonds are finely ground.  In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the ground almonds, flour, and salt, and set aside.  In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and powdered sugar.  Add the almond extract and vanilla extract, and beat until incorporated.  Beat in flour mixture until everything is nice and crumbly.  Set aside one cup of the crumbly butter/flour mixture to be used as the topping.  Pat the remaining crumbly mixture into the prepared 9x13-inch pan, using the bottom of a glass, if needed, to evenly compress it.  Spread the cooled apricot mixture evenly over the bottom layer, and sprinkle evenly with the reserved cup of the crumbly mixture.  Place in the oven, and bake at 350°F for 30-35 minutes until the topping is golden brown, rotating the pan halfway through.  Once the bar is fully cooled, use the foil overhang to lift it out of the pan.  Use a sharp knife to cut the bar into rectangles and to lift each cookie off of the foil.  Store the cookies in a tightly-closed container in the refrigerator. Pin It