Mandel Kranser Almond Crowns

Total Time: 1 hr 25 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 (7 ounce) package almond paste
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup water (for paste mixture)
• 1/2 cup almonds, finely chopped
• egg wash

Recipe

• 1 cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
• 2 add egg yolk and orange zest.
• 3 add flour, don't over mix. if the dough is too crumbly, add a little water.
• 4 chill the dough until firm enough to roll out.
• 5 combine prepared almond paste with egg .
• 6 if the paste is too hard to mix, grate it into the egg and add enough water to achieve a spreadable consistency.
• 7 after the dough is chilled, roll out dough nice and thin.
• 8 cut the dough into 3-inch strips. gather extra dough, repeat until dough is used up.
• 9 spread almond paste mixture on dough, leaving 1/4-inch free at the top edge. gently roll up the dough, and place on a cookie sheet, refrigerating until firm.
• 10 preheat oven to 350 degrees. remove chilled dough from the refrigerator. slice roll into 2-inch pieces, and arrange these on the cookie sheet, leaving a little room for spreading.
• 11 slice each 2-inch roll every 1/4-inch or so from the top down leaving about a 1/4-inch uncut at the bottom.
• 12 gently pull down the ends to form a crown shape. brush each cookie with an egg wash, and sprinkle with almonds. if you prefer, use pearl sugar, for a glittering effect.
• 13 bake 15 to 20 minutes, until pale golden in color, remove and cool.