MINIATURE FLORENTINES

Miniature Florentines image

Provided by Lillian Langseth-Christensen

Yield Makes about 7 dozen cookies

Number Of Ingredients 8

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1/2 cup sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 1/2 tablespoons mild honey
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2/3 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup finely chopped fine-quality candied orange peel*
8 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), finely chopped
parchment paper

Steps:

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Boil sugar, butter, honey, and cream in a 1-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until creamy and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in almonds and orange peel (batter will be thin).
Drop level 1/2 teaspoons of batter about 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. (Batter will thicken as it cools; you may need to reheat for last few batches.) Bake in batches in middle of oven until golden brown and bubbly, 8 to 10 minutes. (Cookies will look runny at this point.) Cool cookies on sheets on racks until firm enough to be lifted, about 2 minutes, then transfer with a metal spatula to racks to cool completely. (These cookies are very delicate; if they become too brittle to lift easily, return to oven to soften, about 1 minute.)
Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally, then remove top of double boiler or bowl from heat. Dip about one third of each cookie into chocolate, then transfer to a parchment-lined tray. Let stand until chocolate is set, about 1 hour.