Sunday, May 17, 2009

almond thins

Another wonderful weekend has flown by way too fast. I'm enjoying a glass of white wine on the porch as all of my baked goods are baking inside - I have hearty oatmeal bread in the bread machine (on the dough cycle - to be transferred to the oven when ready, bread turns out much better this way), pita bread rising on the counter and granola in the oven. I love spending Sunday nights preparing for the week - makes the week feel less hectic knowing we have all the necessities ready.

We had a very satisfying weekend though. We met our friends Jerel & Nicole bright and early Saturday morning at an organic plant sale at Crown Point Farm. We jumped right into all the mayhem of trying to find our veggies, trying not to miss a thing. Amidst the tons of people there, Brad and I found everything we hoped to get, including an heirloom tomato plant known as Aunt Gertie's Gold. Despite the growls of our stomachs, we held off on eating even though the wafts of the chorizo and veggie breakfast burritos were hard to resist. Once we all had exactly what we were looking for, we headed to their place to enjoy brunch. Brad and Nicole decided we should each make a dish that cost less than $10 to make. We chose to make a baked raspberry french toast (which I'll post about eventually!), while Nicole made a delicious goat cheese & cilantro omelette. We sipped on mimosas while waiting for brunch to finish. It was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday morning.

Today we finally got to plant our garden! Well most of it at least because as luck would have it, there's a chance of frost tonight, so we just planted some seeds that won't be destroyed if we do get frost. We'll head back tomorrow evening to plant all of the plants we bought yesterday.

So, you see, another perfect weekend has come to an end. Back to the reality of a work week all too soon. I will leave you with this delicious recipe though - a quick breakfast cookie to grab as you're running out the door Monday morning.

Almond Thins
4 large egg whites
4 oz Baker's Sugar or superfine sugar or sugar you've ground up in the food processor**
1/4 scant teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 oz (weight) all purpose flour**
1 cup whole almonds



Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9×5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper or Release foil.
Beat the egg whites into soft peaks. Slowly add the sugar and continue beating until sugar dissolves and mixture is glossy. Beat in salt and extracts.
Fold in flour. When incorporated, fold in nuts.

Transfer the mixture to the loaf pan bake for 50 minutes (golden brown when done). Remove from oven and let cool for about a half hour.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Lift loaf from pan and using a serrated knife, cut into 32 very thin slices. Place the slices in a single layer on a large cookie sheet. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until cookies are dry.

Let cool completely.

**If you don’t have a scale, you can measure by volume. 4 oz of flour is about 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons. 4 oz sugar is ½ cup plus 2 teaspoons.

original recipe from www.cookiemadness.net

1 comment:

Nicole @ Sprinkle with Salt said...

Love this post, and the almond thins look amazing! I can't wait to try them and the pita bread :)