Oh SILPAT ....I am totally in love with you!
Those of you who use these wonderful silicone baking sheets understand my deep affection for this French wonder. I picked up 2 a couple months ago when my Beantown Boy and I took off to explore some sweet little towns in the Blue Ridge. Just a couple doors down from our luncheon spot was a Cooks store and low and behold they had them. I took a leap of faith and brought them home with me and until last night had never used them. I will never bake cookies without them again! Never, I tell you, will a scoop of cookie dough enter my oven unless it's sitting on a SILPAT! While we watched Julie and Julia last night(I have seen it before and now own the BluRay version) I whipped up a new and wonderful batch of cookies. Every year I try a new recipe for cookies or cakes or desserts....something to add to the 5,829 recipes I dig through each year that have made the cut over the past 27 years and are added to my file of "keepers". Well this year this cookie is moving up to the head of the file. I'll share the recipe with you.....and a snapshot of them right out of the oven. I even turned one over so you can see just how beautiful on the bottom these cookies are using a SILPAT. Run and ask Santa to include one in your stocking this year. Next year, Santa will thank you for leaving him the very best baked cookies to pass his lips on his 2010 Christmas Eve journey.
Chocolate Almond Cookies
`1/2 cup of softened butter
1/2 of Nutella Spread
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar, firmly packed
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. chopped almonds
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
In a large bowl, beat butter and Nutella at med. speed until creamy. Add sugars, beating until creamy. Add eggs and almond extract, beating until combined. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add to butter mixtures beating until combined. Add nuts and chocolate chips, beating until combined. Cover and refrigerate until firm, appox. 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line to baking sheets with SILPAT liners.
Using a spring-loaded 1 1/2inch cookie scoop, scoop dough. Place dough 2 inches apart on the SILPAT liners.
Bake until edges brown and center is no longer shiney...approximately 12-15 minutes. let cool on SILPAT sheets for 5 minutes and then transfer to cooking racks. Enjoy!!!!