“Lady” Finger Cookies
Hal’s mom likes to serve lady finger cookies when she hosts her book club. Hal likes lady finger cookies too - the kind you’d make for Halloween! (But you can make these anytime of year!)
What you’ll need: Sugar cookie dough (you can either buy it premade at the grocery store or use the recipe below.) Pastry brush. Plastic wrap. 30-40 blanched almonds, cut into halves. 1 teaspoon dark cocoa powder. Baking sheet.
Sugar cookie recipe:
(Makes 24-30 cookie fingers)
2 large eggs (1 whole egg + 1 yolk.) Use the leftover egg white for brushing the cookies
1 teaspoon pure vanilla or almond extract
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1. In a bowl add the two types of sugar, vanilla extract, a pinch of salt and the egg + yolk. Stir well.
2. Stir in the softened butter
3. Add the flour and stir until it’s all combined
4. Take the dough and knead it lightly. Wrap it in plastic wrap and chill it in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Heat your oven to 350 degrees
Step 1: Take a small piece of cookie dough (walnut size) and roll it back and forth. You should make the finger long and creepy for best results. Pinch and form knuckles. Score with a knife and transfer the fingers to the prepared baking sheet. Brush the cookies with the leftover egg white and place an almond “nail” on the cookie fingers. Chill for 15 minutes in the refrigerator.
Step 2: Place the baking sheet in the middle of the oven and bake the finger cookies for about 12-15 minutes. They should be just lightly browned. Transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely.
Step 3: Dust the fingers with a little cocoa powder and your creepy dead finger cookies are ready to be served.
Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart