Lemon Almond Shortbread Cookies (LC and GF)
Try this Lemon Almond Shortbread Cookie recipe, or contribute your own.
Try this Lemon Almond Shortbread Cookie recipe, or contribute your own.
- Carbohydrate 40.8123450000219 g
- Cholesterol 183.018750078486 mg
- Fat 162.003907529609 g
- Fiber 22.9481996412277 g
- Protein 40.6383825003103 g
- Saturated Fat 50.745021018752 g
- Serving Size 1 1 large tart or 16 cookies (about 2 inches in diamet (273g)
- Sodium 492.201000210269 mg
- Sugar 17.8641453587942 g
- Trans Fat 9.96852750207275 g
- Calories 1692 calories
Step-by-step
- Melt the butter in the microwave or a small saucepan.
- Add the almond flour, sweetener, and lemon zest, stirring until fully combined.
- To make a tart or pie crust: No need to pre-chill, just press dough into tart or pie tins. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees (F) for 15 mins until firm and golden brown.
- To make the cookies: Form dough (it will be crumbly, this is normal) into a cylinder and wrap tightly with plastic wrap to compress.
- Chill in freezer for 30 minutes or until firm, or in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
- With a sharp knife, slice into ½ inch thick cookies (if they crumble apart your dough isn't cold enough).
- Bake in a preheated oven @ 350 degrees (F) on a greased or parchment lined cookie sheet for 15 minutes, or until firm and golden brown.
- Allow to cool before removing.
Swapping standard granulated sugar for a sugar alcohol like erythritol changes the structural integrity of shortbread significantly. Traditional sucrose melts during baking and recrystallizes upon cooling to provide a crisp crunch, whereas sugar alcohols tend to yield a more tender, sandy crumb. Almond flour lacks gluten entirely, meaning structure relies heavily on the solidifying fats from butter and the fine particle suspension of the ground nuts.
Fat-To-Flour Ratios and Flavor Infusion
Almond flour contains high natural oil content compared to wheat flour, requiring precise fat calibration so the dough does not spread excessively on the pan. Grating fresh citrus zest directly into the melted butter before adding the dry components allows the essential oils of the lemon peel to dissolve into the lipid matrix, distributing aromatic compounds evenly throughout the batch rather than relying on dry mixing alone. Chilling the formed cylinder in the freezer for precisely thirty minutes solidifies the saturated fats in the butter just enough to permit clean slicing at half-inch intervals without crumbling the dense nut flour.
Baking Dynamics and Dietary Adaptations
Baking occurs at a moderate temperature of 350 degrees Fahrenheit, allowing the butter moisture to evaporate gently while browning the almond proteins through Maillard reactions. Watch for golden brown edges as the primary visual cue for doneness, which typically requires fifteen minutes of oven time. For those adjusting this formula for alternative dietary needs, plant-based margarine can substitute for dairy butter at a one-to-one ratio, though the lower water content in some substitutes may require an extra teaspoon of liquid to hold the crumbly mass together during the initial shaping phase.
