Unwind from the tension of holiday getaway cooking with MIO recipes

Venezuelan-born Elsa Elena Escobar enjoys to share her culture by the mouth watering recipes she produces. In 2018, she shared her recipe with us for mochachino almond Christmas log cookies, which occur to be gluten-no cost.

Mochachino almond Christmas log

Helps make 24 cookies

For the cookie:

3½ cups almond flour or almond food

1 cup granulated white sugar

3 big egg whites

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon fast espresso powder

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon boiling water

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 tablespoon Khalua, eggnog or any liquor you want. (Can substitute it for 1 tablespoon of any fruit jam or jelly of your preference)

For the decoration:

1 egg white, a little bit crushed with a fork

Pinch of salt

1½ cups sliced almonds, placed in a pie plate

Purple candied cherries, lower in 50 %

Eco-friendly candied cherries, lower in fourths

Powdered sugar for dusting the cookies soon after baking

1. For the cookies: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a smaller bowl, dissolve the instantaneous coffee powder and the cocoa powder with the tablespoon of boiling water. Increase the almond extract and the liquor, if making use of, to the combination.

3. Merge the almond flour and ½ cup of the sugar in a medium bowl. Established aside.

4. In a massive mixing bowl, making use of an electric mixer, whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt until finally soft peaks are fashioned. Incorporate the remaining ½ cup of sugar and maintain beating for 1 moment. Add the espresso and cocoa mixture.

5. Include the flour and sugar combination to the egg white combination and fold cautiously till nicely put together and a sticky dough is shaped.

6. Divide the dough into 24 balls. Roll each and every ball into a log and location on prepared baking sheet 2 inches apart. You will have 24 logs on the baking sheets. (To roll the balls a lot more simply, moist your fingers with a bit of h2o, when necessary).

7. For decoration: Take each and every log from the baking sheet, roll into the egg white combination initial and then roll into the sliced almonds. Position the logs again on the baking sheet and beautify them with the purple and inexperienced candied cherries. Push the half pink candied cherry in the middle of the log and the quarter inexperienced cherries at the sides, resembling a Xmas flower.

8. Bake the cookies for 20 minutes or until evenly company. If you want a crispier cookie, leave in the oven for 1 or 2 minutes much more.

9. Enable interesting 10 minutes on the baking sheets. Transfer them to a wire rack to interesting wholly. Dust the cookies with the powdered sugar.

Notice: These cookies can be piped as well. Use a pastry bag with a significant star suggestion, these kinds of as the Ateco 827. The logs will be a bit additional practical due to the texture of the suggestion marks.

Can be saved in an airtight container for two or much more months at room temperature. They freeze very nicely for 2 to 3 months.