Blackberry Almond Shortbread Squares Recipes

Steps:

• Beat butter in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks to butter one at a time, blending well after each addition.
• Mix flour, white sugar, baking powder, cardamom, and salt together in a bowl. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture until just combined. Divide dough in half and wrap each tightly in plastic wrap. Freeze for at least 3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Grate 1 ball of frozen dough evenly into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan. Spread blackberry jam over grated dough, leaving 1/2-inch space around the edges. Grate the second ball of frozen dough over the jam.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. After shortbread cools, sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and cut into bars.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Blend and pulse the 1/2 cup nuts in a food processor with the sugar until mixture resembles coarse sand. (If there are a couple small chunks of nuts that is fine.) Add the butter, vanilla and almond extracts, and the salt, and pulse until creamy. Add the flour and continue to pulse to make a soft dough.
• Turn the dough out into a 9-inch tart pan and spread it out evenly with an off-set spatula. Dip the spatula in a little warm water to help smooth and even the surface of the shortbread. Cover and freeze until firm, about 20 minutes.
• Put the tart pan on a baking sheet and dock (prick) the dough all over with a fork. Generously sprinkle the top of the shortbread with sugar. Toss the remaining whole almonds in the egg white; evenly arrange and press the nuts into the dough around the edge of the pan. Bake until golden brown and set, about 1 hour and 10 minutes.
• Cool the short bread in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the tart ring and cut the shortbread with a sharp knife into wedges, each with a nut. Cool shortbreads on a rack completely. (Alternatively present the shortbread as 1 large cookie. Cool the shortbread in the pan completely and remove the tart ring. Cut the shortbread into wedges as desired.) Serve. Store in a tightly sealed container for up to 5 days.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9 × 13-inch baking pan. Line with parchment; butter the lining. Dust with flour; tap out excess. Arrange the nuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until golden, 15 minutes; let cool. Grind in a food processor until fine.
• Whisk together the flour, nuts, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl; set aside. Put 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar and the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in the almond extract. Add the flour mixture in 2 batches; mix until a crumbly dough forms.
• Press all but 1 cup dough onto the bottom of the pan. Toss the berries with the zest; scatter over the dough. Sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon sugar; crumble the reserved dough on top. Bake until golden, about 30 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack. Cut into 12 squares; dust with sugar.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat butter with 1/2 cup sugar and almond extract until light and fluffy. With a wooden spoon, stir in flour until smooth and well combined. Divide dough into 2 parts. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• On lightly sugared surface, roll out dough, one part at a time, about 1/2-inch thick. Cut out cookies with a 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter. Place on ungreased cookie sheet 1 inch apart. Make an indentation in the center of each cookie with the end of a wooden spoon.
• Bake in preheated oven until cookies are light golden brown around the edges, 25 to 30 minutes. While still warm, roll in sugar. Cool completely on a wire rack. Store in an air-tight container.