Maria is asking me for an easy, fast recipe for a special autumn treat to give out to her friends to celebrate this wonderful season. Here ya’ go, Maria…
Assuming you have a food processor, these cookies are both easy and fast. You can make a batch in a single sheet pan, so no problems with your small oven. I can put together a batch in about 25-30 minutes, which is also the cooking time. So, if you do back-to-back batches, you can crank out quite a few cookies in an evening. Plus, they store well either in an airtight container or in the freezer. Put wax paper between layers in a rubbermaid or tupperware box.
KRUNCHIES
This is Irene’s recipe, I’m not sure where she got it. I used a combo of walnuts and pecans in this batch, and made them in a 9 1/2 by 12 inch cookie pan, but they were a little too thick for my taste. You should make them as directed below in a 13 x 18 inch cookie sheet – you’ll get more cookies, and they’ll be thinner and crisper.
2 cups flour
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
½ tsp. cinnamon
2 sticks cold butter
1 egg, separated
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup finely chopped nuts (pecans, filberts, almonds, pistachios, in any combination)
In food processor mix flour, salt, sugar and cinnamon. Pulse several times to mix. Cut each stick of butter into 8 pieces and add to flour mixture. Pulse until crumbly. Add egg yolk and vanilla and process until dough forms a ball.
Pat thin on large (13 x 18 in) cookie sheet with sides. Smear surface of dough with unbeaten egg white. Pour off excess egg white. Sprinkle evenly with chopped nuts.
Bake in pre-heated 350 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes till lightly browned. Check at 15 minutes to keep from burning.
Remove from oven and cut in squares while they are hot (I use a pizza cutter), then place the cookie sheet on a rack to cool. When cooled, carefully lift the cookies out using a narrow spatula to avoid breaking them.
Sweet!
Not only am I excited about the cookies, but I am also so excited that you posted such a tasty response! Thank you! (I like exclamation points!)
These look like “Toffee Squares” that my Mom used to make every Christmas. She got the recipe from a very old Betty Crocker Cookie Cookbook published in the 1960’s. It is out of print now I believe, but has a red cover and I picked up a few more copies 5 or 8 years ago.
As a rule I am a chocoholic, but this cookie is YUMMY!!!
This recipe comes from my cousin Eleanor (now deceased). I’ve been making it for about 40 years and it is somewhat tweaked from the original. Yes, thinner is better!