Weekend Cooking...Almond Horns

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I think the first time I ever had an Almond Horn was at the Kringla Bakeri og Cafe at Epcot in Disney World. I can remember sitting there after Illuminations one night, waiting for the crowds to make there way out. On a chilly evening..and yes, I have experienced some chilly evenings at Disney World..there is nothing like a warm beverage, coffee, tea or hot chocolate, and a lovely, chewy Almond Horn.
Sadly, last time I was there the bakery had no Almond Horns.
What is the world coming to?

 

I was reminded of my fondness for this confection when the Niece and I were at the Reading Terminal Market recently. Termini Bakery there has all sorts of interesting and delicious looking things, but the Almond Horns have to rank near the top.
Shocking though was the price. One Almond Horn, granted a good size one, was $4!
 

 

So I decided to look into making my own, and I must say as cookies go, this is a simple one. And a great chance to use my lovely food processor, although you can use a mixer.
True, the ingredients, as few as they are, are not the cheapest. Almond paste..I used the Odense brand..and almonds, are a bit expensive. But at $4 each..well, think of all the money I saved! lol

I used the recipe off the Odense web site as well, with just a few changes. I added 1 tsp. of almond extract, as I saw many recipes did. And when I removed the dough from the food processor, I wrapped it in plastic and let it chill in the frig for awhile to make it more workable. It is still sticky, but doable when it is colder.

Almond Horn Cookies 
makes 12

Ingredients:

• 1 box Almond Paste, grated
• 3/4 cup confectionery sugar
• 1 large egg (room temperature), separated
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 1 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup thinly sliced almonds, slightly crushed
• 4 oz bittersweet chocolate

 

Directions:

Line cookie sheet with parchment or foil. 

 In a food processor or with a mixer, combine Almond Paste and sugar. Mix until the texture of fine crumbs. Add egg white and flour, reserving yolk. Mix until dough becomes a smooth paste, it will be slightly sticky. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill 20 minutes in frig. 

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. With floured hands roll dough into a 12 inch log. Divide into 12 equal pieces and roll into balls. Roll balls between palms into 3 inch logs, slightly tapered at ends. Spread almonds on a plate. Beat reserved egg yolk with 2 tablespoons of water. Dampen log with beaten yolk. Roll each log in almonds until coated, bending into crescents. Place crescents 2 inches apart on cookie sheet and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 F.  

Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until light golden in color. Cool sheet on wire rack for 5 minutes, and loosen crescents with a spatula. Slide parchment off of sheet and back onto wire rack to finish cooling cookies. Melt chocolate in a double boiler or microwave. Dip cookie ends into melted chocolate. Place back on parchment until chocolate is dry. Layer 'Almond Horns' between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container.

An airtight container, really? How long do they think these are going to last.
I plan to take them over to the Bro and Sil's today. We are heading up to Villanova this morning for the Niece's college graduation.
I suspect the Almond Horns will make a nice breakfast treat.

 

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This is my contribution this to this week's Weekend Cooking.
"Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend."
Be sure to check out the other entries this week. As always, hosted by Beth Fish Reads.

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