I made you rainbow cookies. And I l-o-v-e rainbow cookies. They’re my absolute favorite. And I haven’t had them in years. They’re multicolored. That sounded like too much work. Boy … more
I made you rainbow cookies. And I l-o-v-e rainbow cookies. They’re my absolute favorite. And I haven’t had them in years. They’re multicolored. That sounded like too much work.
Boy was I wrong. They’re super easy. And if you made some, and I could smell them baking, I’d introduce myself and pretend I had to talk to you about something really important. So I could end up having to sit down. And wait for you to offer me a cookie. And when you turned away, I’d sneak some into my pockets. For later. I’d wear cargo pants for the occasion. For all the pockets.
I really, really love these babies. The almond flavor. That dense sweetness that isn’t cloying. The colored layers.
Here’s how simple. Cream some almond paste, butter (okay, a lot of butter), sugar, and eggs. Add some flour. You’re almost home. Separate the dough into thirds. Dye one green. One red (pink?). The dough will be springy, almost. But don’t worry. It spreads easily in a greased pan when you use wet fingers. And a wet spatula. Bake for 10 minutes. Layer the layers with seedless raspberry jam, refrigerate overnight, top with ganache, chill again and slice. Here’s how little the dough changes when it’s baked. It’s a bit shiny when it’s unbaked, and a little bumpy and lightly brown around the edge when baked.
Then layer it up, put an elephant on top of the layers in the refrig overnight, top with ganache…
Then slice …
And enjoy!
- 8 ounces almond paste (Love ‘n’ Bake brand is gluten-free), broken up with a fork
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- ¾ cup sugar
- 4 extra-large eggs
- 2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour (I use Better Batter)
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if using Better Batter)
- red food coloring (6 to 8 drops liquid)
- green food coloring (6 to 8 drops liquid)
- ¼ cup seedless red raspberry jam (I like Polaner all-fruit, but any will do)
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ⅓ to ½ cup milk or cream (not nonfat)
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease 3 rectangular pans (I used 11 inch x 7 inch, but 9 inch x 12 inch work well, too) with unsalted butter and set them aside. Avoid using glass, if possible. If you do use glass pans, lower the baking temperature to about 335 degrees Fahrenheit, and monitor carefully during baking to prevent burning.
- In a large bowl (or, ideally, the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), cream the almond paste, 1 cup butter, sugar, and eggs until well combined and very smooth. Add the flour and xanthan gum, and mix until the dough comes together and is smooth. It will be thick and shiny (see the photo).
- Divide the dough into three parts. Add the green food coloring to one part, and mix to combine. Add the red food coloring to another part, and mix to combine. Divide the 3 parts of dough among the three prepared pans. Stretch and press the dough into an even layer in each pan, using wet fingers and a wet spatula.
- Place each pan, one at a time, into the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes, or until the dough just begins to brown around the edges. It may puff up, but it will cave. We want it flat, and it will be flat. Not to worry.
- Allow the layers to cool slightly in the pans. Place the green layer on a piece of parchment paper, spread evenly with one half of the jam, top with the plain layer, spread the remaining jam on top of the plain layer, and top with the red (okay, pink) layer. Cover the whole thing in plastic wrap, top with a pan that is the same size as what you baked them in. Place something heavy (I used 3 pounds of raw chicken. seriously. it was really well sealed) atop the pan to compress the layers. Refrigerate at least 8 hours, or overnight.
- Once the cookies are chilled, make the ganache. Place the chocolate in a medium sized heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, heat ⅓ cup cream and 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat until the butter is melted and the cream is just beginning to simmer. Pour the hot cream and butter mixture over the chocolate, mixing to combine. The chocolate should be smooth and shiny. If the chocolate is not pourable, stir in as much of the remaining cream as necessary to make it shiny and pourable. Pour the ganache over the top of the chilled cookies, and spread with a spoon or offset spatula in an even layer.
- Chill once more until the ganache is set (in the refrigerator for an hour, or the freezer for about 15 minutes). Slice with a large serrated knife into squares.
- Serve chilled. To me. Serve them chilled to me.
Love,
Me
P.S. If you haven’t yet, please pick up a copy of both of My Cookbooks! I can’t keep the blog going without your support!
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