Florentine Cookies

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.

Step 2

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, then add the sugar, heavy cream, honey and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking, then remove from the heat. Let cool slightly, about 3 minutes.

Step 3

Add the vanilla to the butter mixture and stir to combine. Add the almonds, flour and orange zest. Mix to combine. Transfer the pan to an ice bath to cool the mixture completely; this will take about 15 minutes.

Step 4

Spoon the dough onto the prepared sheet pans, using about 2 tablespoons for each cookie and adding only 2 cookies to each pan, as these cookies spread a lot. Dip your fingers in cold water and use them to flatten each cookie; try to keep them as round as possible.

Step 5

Bake for 10 to 14 minutes or until golden brown in the middle. Remove the cookies from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack. If you want perfectly round cookies, let them cool very slightly on the wire rack, about 2 minutes. Then, use a 3- or 4-inch (depending on how big you want your cookies to be) round cutter to cut out the cookies. Don’t discard the scraps; they are still very delicious.

Step 6

Let the sheet pans cool completely, about 15 minutes, then line them again with a new piece of parchment and repeat with the remaining dough. You will need to repeat this step a third time, making sure you let the sheet pans cool completely before starting the next batch.

Step 7

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or using a double boiler. Spread a thin, even layer over the flat side of one cookie and place another cookie on top to form a sandwich. Repeat to fill the remaining cookies, drizzle the rest of the melted chocolate over the cookies and then let them set for about 5 minutes before eating. Enjoy!