Figure-Eight Cookies
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INGREDIENTS 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon double-acting baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons butter (1/4 pound stick), softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 whole egg, lightly beaten
1 egg white combined with 2 teaspoons water and beaten to a froth
1/2 cup blanched almonds, finely chopped or pulverized in a blender or nut grinderSift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together onto a strip of wax paper and set aside.
In a deep mixing bowl, cream together 7 tablespoons of the butter and 1/2 cup of the sugar, beating and mashing them against the sides of the bowl with the back of a large spoon until they are thoroughly blended.
Beat in the whole egg, then add the sifted flour mixture, about 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. With your hands vigorously knead the dough in the bowl until it can be gathered into a somewhat firm, compact ball.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a rectangle at least 6 inches wide, 15 inches long and about 1/4-inch thick. With a ruler and a pastry wheel or small, sharp knife, trim the rectangle to exactly 6 x 15 inches, and then cut it crosswise into 30 strips each 1/2-inch wide and 6 inches long.
To shape each figure-eight cookie, gently pinch and fold the long edges of one strip of dough together and roll the strip lightly into a pencil-like cylinder about 6 or 7 inches long and 1/3-inch in diameter. Lift one end of the cylinder in each hand, cross the ends over one another, and loop them together to make a figure eight. Pinch the ends together tightly and lay the cookie on a wire cake rack set over wax paper.
When all the cookies have been shaped, spread the beaten egg white mixture lightly over the tops with a pastry brush. Stir the almonds and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar together and sprinkle the mixture evenly over the cookies.
Carefully transfer the racks of cookies to the refrigerator and chill them for at least 30 minutes, which will firm the dough and set their shape before baking.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. With a pastry brush, spread the remaining tablespoon of butter evenly on 2 large baking sheets. Carefully transfer the cookies with a metal spatula to the buttered sheets, arranging them 1 inch apart. Bake the cookies in the middle of the oven for about 12 minutes, or until they are delicately browned.
With a spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool. The cookies will keep up to 2 weeks in a tightly covered tin.
Makes about 30 cookies