Cardamom Espresso Cookies

Ease of preparation rating: Easy
Yield: 36 cookies

Ingredients:

3 cups (710 ml) all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon (15 ml) ground cardamom

1 teaspoon (5 ml) cinnamon

1 ½ tablespoons (22 ml) finely ground espresso

½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt

1 ¼ cups (300 ml) butter, at room temperature

1 ¼ cups (300 ml) sugar

1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla

Chocolate coating

8 ounces (240 ml) bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces

1 tablespoon (15 ml) butter

Toasted coffee beans, for garnish

Special equipment

3-inch (7.5 cm) round cook cutter

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cardamom, cinnamon, espresso, and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and mix until combined. Add flour mixture and beat until well-combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl from time to time.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and pat down until 1/3-inch (8 mm) thick. Cut rounds from dough using a 3-inch (7.5 cm) cookie cutter, then transfer to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until a light golden brown.

Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

For the chocolate coating, melt chocolate and butter in a double-boiler (or in a heatproof bowl sitting over a saucepan of gently simmering water on the stove), stirring until smooth. Remove melted chocolate from heat. Dip half of each cookie in the chocolate, letting the excess drip off. Place one toasted coffee bean on the chocolate half, then transfer to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet to set.