Almond Triangles

When a recipe requires four sticks of butter and five cups of almonds, can there possibly be a downside? No. Charlotte Midthun of Granite Falls encountered this recipe in First for Women magazine and had a hunch it would be a hit. “I took these to a party, and everyone loved them,” she said. “I’ve been making them ever since. They’re such a nice contrast to all the chocolate cookies and sugar cookies at Christmas.” They sure are.

MAKES 4 TO 6 DOZEN COOKIES

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, divided

  The Ultimate Minnesota Cookie Book Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson

• ³/₄ cup granulated sugar, divided

• 1 egg

• ³/₄ teaspoon almond extract

• ¹/₂ teaspoon salt

• 2 ³/₄ cups flour

• 1 cup packed light brown sugar

• ¹/₃ cup honey

• ¹/₄ cup heavy cream

• 1 pound (about 5 ¹/₄ cups) sliced almonds

NOTE:This dough must be prepared in advance. These bar cookies freeze really well.

DIRECTIONS

Carefully line a 10- by 15-inch jelly roll pan with aluminum foil, shiny side up.

In the bowl of an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat 1 cup butter until creamy, about 1 minute. Gradually add ¹/₂ cup granulated sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, almond extract, and salt, and beat until thoroughly combined. Reduce the speed to low, add the flour, and mix until just combined. Press the dough evenly into the pan and push the dough up the sides. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375°F. Using a fork, prick the dough in 20 to 24 places all across the dough and bake 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the brown sugar, honey, remaining 1 cup butter, and remaining ¹/₄ cup granulated sugar, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium-high, bring the mixture to a boil, and cook for 3 minutes without stirring.

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cream. Stir in the almonds. Spread the almond mixture evenly over the crust. Return the pan to the oven and bake until bubbling, about 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. While the bar cookies are still slightly warm, cut them into triangles.

“Almond Triangles” reprinted from The Ultimate Minnesota Cookie Book: 100 Best Recipes from the Star Tribune’s Holiday Cookie Contest by Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson; Photography by Tom Wallace. Published by the University of Minnesota Press. Copyright 2024 by Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson. Photographs copyright 2024 by Tom Wallace. Used by permission.

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