My Finnish grandmother used to make these, and they always remind me of Christmas. For the dough: For the topping: Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. (If you are using a convection oven, set it to 310 degrees.) Set the oven racks so they divide the oven into thirds. Line baking sheets with parchment. Finely chop the almonds. Cream the butter and sugar on medium speed of your mixer until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the salt and almonds and mix until evenly combined. On low speed, add the flour, and beat just until the mixture is blended thoroughly. I find it is easiest to get even-sized cookies if you divide the dough into 6 pieces, and each of those into 7 pieces. Then roll each piece into a log about 3 inches longPlace the log onto the parchment-lined baking sheets, and turn the edges into a curve to form a half moon. . (At this point they can be frozen.) If you are baking the cookies now, keep the cookies about 1-1/2 inches apart, because they will spread a little while baking. Bake the cookies until they are firm to the touch, but not yet brown, about 12-15 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time. Remove the pans from the oven and set them on wire racks to let the cookies cool. While the cookies are cooling, prepare the topping by mixing the sugar
and the cinnamon in a small bowl. When the cookies are completely cool,
roll them in the cinnamon sugar to coat them thoroughly. Store the cookies
in single layers with wax or parchment paper between layers, in an airtight
container. These cookies will keep for up to 3 weeks in a cool place. |