White Chocolate Florentine Cookies
White Chocolate Florentine Cookies, sometimes called lace cookies, are thin, crispy Italian confections sandwiched and drizzled with festive white chocolate. If you’re a white chocolate lover, these are the cookies for you. They can also be made with milk and dark chocolate.
Also very festive for the Christmas season, don’t forget the espresso.
The dark chocolate version of my Florentine Cookies which I posted back in 2014, are consistently on my most visited recipe list. This must be a good reason for you try them, right?
Florentine Cookie History
Invented in the Italian city of Florence (Firenze) in the Tuscan region of Italy, Florentine Cookies are a unique cookie that is made with dough that is almost cooked before shaped and baked.
White Chocolate Florentine Cookies are very fitting for the winter season. Serve with your favorite hot chocolate, eggnog and well, any hot drink that is your favorite really.
Dried or Candied Fruit
Dried or candied fruit (your choice) is a delicious addition. I particularly love dried orange or mandarin with chocolate. You can use any dried fruit you like, or leave it out.
Corn Syrup
There is light corn syrup in these cookies, this is how I have always made them. Even though these are a crunchy cookie, the corn syrup adds a little chewiness too. I believe honey can be used instead, but I have not tried them this way.
Peeling Almonds
The almonds must be peeled and it is hard to find already peeled almonds. No one should be expected to battle with the paper-thin wrapping of an almond, that is why I came up with an easy method of How to Peel Almonds.
As you can see in the pic below, some of the cookies will vary in color and size even in the same baking batch. Don’t worry, it just gives them a more homemade look. When you sandwich them, just pick ones that are the same size.
For Christmas and the holiday’s, my Peppermint Florentine Cookies are always a hit. Picture below.
This recipe yields 30 sandwiched cookies that are 2-inches/5 cm in diameter.
Equipment needed
The largest baking/cookie sheet you have. I use 17 x 12 inches (43 x 30 cm) to which I can fit 6 cookies. Parchment paper or a silicone baking mat is a must. A good, non-stick cookie sheet could be used but I have not tried it.
White Chocolate Florentine Cookies
Lace cookies are sandwiched and drizzled with white chocolate
Ingredients
- 1 cup (145 grams) raw almonds,
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons dried orange see note
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ pounds (567 grams) white chocolate cut into small chunks
Instructions
- Position oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 325°F/163°C. Line a large 17 x 12 inch (43 x 30 cm) baking or cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- To peel the almonds: Over high heat, bring a saucepan of water to a boil.
Add the almonds and boil for 1 minute (no longer because they will soften). Drain and rinse with cold water to cool and stop them from cooking. Spread onto a towel and rub them until the peels come off. Dry well. - Add the peeled almonds to a food processor or blender and pulse until finely chopped.
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the almonds, flour and dried orange.
- To a small saucepan add the sugar, cream, corn syrup and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the mixture comes to a rolling boil and the sugar is completely dissolved. Continue to simmer for 1 minute.
- Remove from the heat and add the mixture to the almond mix along with the vanilla. Stir until combined. Allow to cool until it is cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes.
- Using a teaspoon measuring spoon, portion out 1 teaspoon of dough and roll into a ball using your hands. Roll the balls as round as you can, this will ensure nice round cookies. If the dough seems dry and crumbly, simply put a ball of the dough your warm hand it will soften so you can shape.
- Place the dough balls 6-inches (15 cm) apart on the prepared baking sheet. They spread to 3-inches (7 ½ cm) in diameter. You'll need to work in batches to fit them your baking sheet without melting into each other.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. If they join together, use a sharp knife to separate while they are hot and soft on the baking sheet as they will harden very quickly.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes until they are no longer soft, then transfer to a cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- In a microwave safe bowl, add the chocolate and microwave in 10 second increments, stirring in between until melted. Be careful not to burn.
- Take a cooled cookie, spread the chocolate on one side, take another cookie and make a sandwich, press carefully as they are delicate. Repeat with all cookies.
- If you would like to drizzle chocolate on the top, put the melted chocolate into a small ziptop bag. Snip of a very tiny piece of the corner and this will allow you to get the perfect drizzle.
- Allow the cookies to cool and store in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
If you can find already peeled almonds, skip step 2
Note: Any dried fruit you like can be used. I prefer the orange with chocolate.
Nutrition Information
Yield
30Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 170Total Fat 10gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4gCholesterol 10mgSodium 19mgCarbohydrates 19gFiber 1gSugar 18gProtein 2g
This nutrition calculation is provided by Nutronix that is only a guideline and not intended for any particular diet.
4 Comments on “White Chocolate Florentine Cookies”
Why am I missing a step? Where does the chocolate come in?
I’m not sure why that happened, it should be ok now.
the dark chocolate are my favorite that I make all of the time and tried these yesterday and now I love these too. will make them for christmas
I feel the same and they are always a hit at Christmas