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Ooh, ooh, ooh! Just tried this from Cook's Illustrated Desserts... and ended up with cookies as good as those from Romeo's Euro Cafe in downtown Gilbert (home of the amazing feta dressing)! I'm grinning ear to ear.
As per usual, I made some tweaks as noted.
2 c (210g) sliced almonds (I toast mine whenever I pick up a big bag from Costco)
3/4 c. cream (orig specified "heavy", but I just had normal(?) and it worked fine)
4 T butter, cut into pieces
1/2 c sugar (for my first batch I'd started on a different recipe and already had dark brown sugar in the bowl - it worked fine)
1/4 c (65 g) fig-balsamic spread*
3 T flour
1 t vanilla extract
(1/4 t grated orange zest... omitted)
1/4 t salt
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
*Original/traditional uses orange marmalade... I'm not a fan of it so I swapped in Caramelized Balsamic Fig Spread I made awhile back. While traveling I tried Kroger’s Private Selection Honey Fig spread - it worked a treat! That’s where I got the 8 g carb/cookie. I’m guessing it would also work with an apple-butter-like spread.
Adjust oven racks to about 1/3 from top and 1/3 from bottom and preheat to 350°F. Put silicone baking mats or parchment on two baking sheets.
(Process almonds in a food processor until they resemble coarse sand - about 30 seconds. I *didn't* do this because that's not what Romeo does... but I did crush them a bit with my hands.)
Bring cream, butter, and sugar to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until mixture begins to thicken, 5-6 minutes. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to brown at edges (hard to see if you're using brown sugar) and is thick enough to leave a trail that doesn't immediately fill in when spatula is scraped along the bottom, 1-2 minutes longer (it's ok if darker speckles appear in the mixture). Remove pan from heat and stir in almonds, marmalade/jam, flour, vanilla (orange zest), and salt until combined.
Drip six 1-tablespoon portions onto each baking sheet, spaced at least 3.5" apart. Flatten to 2.5" circle with silicone spatula (or wait for it to cool a bit and use dampened fingers).
Bake cookies until deep brown from edge to edge, 15-17 minutes (mine took less time, about 10 minutes... I think my oven runs a bit hot; Mom’s convection oven only took about 8 minutes at 350F), rotating and swapping shelves halfway through. Wait for cookies to cool (they'll harden... remove them up too soon and they'll sag), remove, and repeat with remaining dough.
Wait for all cookies to cool completely. Microwave about three quarters of the chocolate at 50% power, stiring frequently, until about two thirds melted, 60-90 seconds. Remove from microwave and add remaining chocolate. Stir until all (barely) melted, return to microwave for 5 second bursts only if necessary. Transfer to a small zip-lock bag. Snip off corner (no more than 1/16") . Pipe chocolate on cookies... I do circular swirls, though nearly parallel lines ober the whole pan seems more traditional. Have fun! Any extra chocolate is for you :-)
Refrigerate until chocolate is set (about 30 minutes). Serve or store at cool room temperature/refrigerated for up to 4 days.
Makes 24 cookies with 8 g net carb & 145 calories each.
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