five ingredients or less: baci di dama

Is it just me, or is there something menacing about the cookies in this picture?



That all seem to be staring at me, daring me to eat them, a disapproving glare headed in my direction. They certainly don't look as sweet as they actually are. These Baci di Dama - or Lady's Kisses - are Italian shortbread-style sandwich cookies from Piemonte that I saw on Molto Mario a couple of weeks ago. They are exceedingly simple to make; they look a lot more complicated than they are. A whiz in the food processor is all it takes to make the basic cookie, leaving you with a bowl full of what appears to be grainy sand:



I was a little wary that this extremely dry mixture would never form solid cookies, but a good press into a round measuring spoon made a perfect cookie shape:



And the quick bake further solidified matters, though the result was a bit harder to the tooth than I would have liked. I may throw an egg yolk in there next time:



Some melted bittersweet chocolate brought two cookies together as one kiss, and the quiet cookie judgment began:



I think he's a little unhappy with me. Recipe after the jump:

BACI DI DAMA

1/2 cup thinly sliced almonds
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat. Combine the almonds, sugar, flour and butter in a food processor and pulse until uniform. The mixture will be dry and sandy. Using a round 1 tbsp measuring spoon, press the mixture into the spoon to make a half round. Place the formed cookies on the baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake for 12-15 minutes until just starting to brown lightly. Remove and allow to cool completely.

When the cookies are cool, melt the chocolate in a double boiler or the microwave. Spoon a small amount of chocolate onto the flat side of a cookie and spread a thin layer evenly. Sandwich the flat side of a second cookie to the chocolate. Allow the chocolate to set before serving.