Maus Bytes

I’ve been trying to get into the habit of taking what ever is lying around and making something with it. For instance, bananas that you don’t always eat can be turned into banana bread, or pudding. Corn can be thrown into corn bread or stuffing. This time, it was Almonds.

I had way too many bags and decided to flip through my well-loved Betty Crocker Cook Book, (Yes, it is a first edition), and found a cookie recipe, several actually, that used almonds. Granted I’m not used to making anything but drop cookies and cut outs, so I took these Almond Crescent cookies and turned them into cut outs.

When I was done, they reminded me of the Russian Tea Cakes I used to make for school during holidays. I also couldn’t have just one and quickly had to control myself from eating all that sweet powdery goodness called, ‘Powdered Sugar.’

I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!

Almond Cookie Goodness

You will need:

1. A bag of Almonds helps. You’ll use about 2/3 of a cup, chopped up as much as possible. Or as little.  It’s your cookie!

2. 1/2 cup shortening – that would be the wonderful yummy Crisco you don’t know what to do with- and 1/2 cup butter. Or if you’d rather do all of one, go for it.  Shortening has less fat in it per 2 tbsp’s! At least I think it’s 2..

3. 1 and 2/3 cups of all purpose flour.

4. 1/3 – 1/2 cup of sugar. Remember! Don’t use too much! We’re puttin’ Powdered Sugar on these babies!

5. One bowl big enough to put an Oreo in, half filled with powdered sugar . It’s almost sad I can use an Oreo as a size reference, but hilarious if you know exactly what I’m talking about.

As always, preheat the oven to 325.

Okay! Start with nice softened butter and shortening. If it isn’t soft and you don’t want to wait, just sick it in something microwavable for about 15 seconds or until its squishable, but not melted. If you melted it, oh well. Just dump it in there and see what happens.

Now, while that just sits there, dump in the sugar. With a wooden spoon or, well, what ever you want to use to mix with, mix and mash the sugar in with the butter-shortening.

Let it sit for a minute or ten while you have fun chopping up your nuts and then add them to the mashed mixture.  Yes, it’s supposed to be squishy.

Last, add the flour. Don’t dump it all at once! I guarantee you won’t like what happens. So add it bit by bit, mixing and mashing as you go until it’s all mixed in.

Yes, it’s supposed to look like that. That’s what Molded Cookie Dough looks like: Soft Meal. Now, you can either have fun with the dough warm, or chill it like a non-impatient person so it’s a little easier to handle.

Bake the cookies for about 8 min. or until set. (Until Set means: You can poke them and they’re not squishy.) Don’t brown them or they’ll mutate and turn you into a cookie.

Take them out and carefully slide them onto a nice place to cool and when they’re cool enough, wiggle one at a time around in the bowl of powdered sugar and eat it!

If you’re molding them and the dough builds up on your fingers, it’s okay. I kept having to wash my hands. If the cookies crumble after you’ve baked them..it’s okay, they’re still good, you just put a bit too much fat in it. Like I did the first time I made them. HEH!