Most crisp Chinese style almond cookie.
Chinese almond cookie is one of the yummy and crunchy Chinese style pastries, usually made for festivals (Chinese New Year). It has been the most popular snack for children in my family for years. Similar cookies include Chinese walnut cookie and butter cookie.
The original recipe is published 4 years ago but I changed the recipe a lot in this year’s new version. In order to make the cookies much crispier, I use almond flour in the dough. Please note, since we add almond flour and relatively a smaller amount of liquid in the dough, there will be cracks on the surface. Cracks indicate the successfully produced crisp texture. If you want to eliminate the cracks on the surface, use less flour and make the dough softer.
Almond flour not only brings the cookie a aroma of almond, but also changes the texture.
Cream butter with egg yolk, sugar and almond extract in a large mixing bowl and then sift salt, cake flour, almond flour and baking soda. Combine all the ingredients together and then knead into a dough. Cover with plastic wrapper and refrigerate for 1 hour (optional in winter).
Preheat the oven to 170 degree C. Divide the dough into 16 similar pieces and then shape each one into a round ball. Slightly flat with fingers (or if you prefer a cuter pattern, you can use forks). Then decorate whole almond in the center. Optionally, brush the egg wash.
Bake for 18 to 20 minutes and then let the cookies stay in the oven for another 10 minutes.
Transfer to cooling rack until completely cooled. Then package with air-tight container.
Chinese Almond Cookie
Ingredients
- 115 g butter ,softened in room temperature
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/4 tsp. almond extract
- 120 g cake flour
- 60 g almond flour
- 1 small pinch of salt
- 35 g to 40g sugar
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 16 whole almonds for decoration
egg wash
- 1 tbsp. egg liquid + 1 tbsp. water
Instructions
- Cream butter with egg yolk, sugar and almond extract in a large mixing bowl and then sift salt, cake flour, almond flour and baking soda.
- Combine all the ingredients together and then knead into a dough. Cover with plastic wrapper and refrigerate for 1 hour (optional in winter).
- Pre-heat oven to 170 degree C.
- Divide the dough into 16 similar pieces and then shape each one into a round ball. Slightly flat with fingers (or if you prefer a cuter pattern, you can use forks). Then decorate whole almond in the center. Optionally, brush the egg wash.
- Bake for 18 to 20 minutes and then let the cookies stay in the oven for another 10 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack until completely cooled. Then package with air-tight container.
Notes
Nutrition
I don’t understand 1/2 middle
egg
Hi Dariela,
I am living in China, thus cannot know the exact size of egg on your side. There are smaller, middle and really large eggs vary from 40g-60g. I should have make the statement clear. Thanks for your feedback.
where can i get cake flour?
Hi Jessica,
Cake flour is low gluten flour. You can try to search it in your local stores.
Use All Purpose flour (plain) mixed with corn flour to a ratio of 3:1 (Nigella Lawson suggests) or take out 2 tablespoons from the cup of flour and replace with corn flour.
You keep saying roll dough into small bowls. Do you mean small balls ?
Hi Cindy,
That’s a typo. Thanks for the correctness. Recipe updated!
Do you have to use cake flour or can you use all purpose flour and do you have the exact measurement for the vanilla or almond extract? Thank you!!!
Do you have to use cake flour or can you use all purpose flour and Is there an exact measurement for the vanilla/almond extract? Thank you!!!
Hi Lissa,
Yes, cake flour is highly recommended but you can use all purpose flour as a substitute. I usually use 1/4 teaspoon extract.
Rebondir
J’ai vu que vous avez la recette des cookies aux amandes mais celui que je recherche c.est celui
Des allons cookies macau. Est ce que vous croyez que je peux utiliser votre recette pour en faire
Est ce que vous pourrez me dire où je pourrais trouver cette recette. J’adore ces biscuits la
Merci
Daniele
Hi, im doing a food project for my Chinese class and I have to write the recipe in Chinese could possibly translate it into Chinese simplified characters with pinying if you don’t mind thanks.
Slightly lower your oven temperature can help to avoid cracks.
Hi Elaine, can I replace sugar powder with caster sugar or brown sugar? why do you use sugar powder?
Sure, caster sugar can be a good substitute. Brown sugar works fine too. The reason why I use sugar powder is because it cooperate better with a denser dough.
Hi Elaine, thank you for the recipe.
I tried to make it, but it was so dry that it was still completely powder after I added all the ingredients. Are you sure that the amounts of flour and almond flour are correct? Other recipes online use about half of this amount of flour for a similar amount of butter.
Mariko,
Sorry, I have halved the ingredients during this batch and made a wrong calculation. I have already updated the recipe with the correct ingredient.