Blue Ribbon Almond Roca Cookies

I've said this before and I'll say it again...I LOVE COOKIES!  I'm a huge fan of any and all types of cookies.  A few months ago, I got to talking with my friend, Kayla, about toffee and Almond Roca.  I mentioned that I had a great recipe for Almond Roca Cookies and that I would make her some.  Well, life got in the way and I got busy, but since I'm not one to tease about cookies, I finally got around to making them the other night and they did not disappoint! 

This is a Food Network recipe from one of Emeril's holiday shows a few years ago.  On the show he had some of the viewers best cookie recipes and once I saw this one I just had to make them.

These cookies are really easy to through together and the only trouble I had was finding toffee bits!  Has anyone else run into this problem?!  I went to 3 grocery stores and they did not carry them.  Then, I went to Wal-Mart and they were all out!  The closest I could find was a mix of toffee bits and milk chocolate pieces.  Maybe toffee bits are just more of a holiday item?

Anyway, I highly recommend these cookies for those of you who like Almond Roca!  They are delicious, covered in almonds and then drizzled with chocolate.  Yum!  As usual, I used whole wheat flour and subbed egg whites.  I personally like to leave these cookies in the frig so that the chocolate stays nice and firm, while the cookies have a cool, crisp texture, but they are great at room temperature too.

Enjoy! (Glad you liked them, Kayla!)

Dough balls, rolled in almonds and ready to hit the oven.

 

Cooled cookies.

Melting the chocolate.

Finished cookies!

Blue Ribbon Almond Roca Cookies

Recipe courtesy Lynn Scully, Rancho Santa Fe, California

Makes approximately 4 dozen

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 package toffee bits
• 1 cup coarsely ground almonds
• 4 ounces milk chocolate
• 1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend sugars together on medium speed. Add butter and mix to form a grainy paste. Add eggs and vanilla and mix at medium speed until light and fluffy. At low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and then the toffee bits. Mix until just blended; do not over-mix.

Place ground nuts in a small bowl. Using hands, roll balls of dough into 1 to 1 1/2-inch balls, then roll in the ground nuts. Place on cookie sheets several inches apart. Bake approximately 22 minutes and then transfer cookies to a cooling rack.

Melt the chocolate with the vegetable oil in a double boiler or in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Drizzle melted chocolate over cooled cookies. Place cookies on a cookie sheet and place in freezer or refrigerator until chocolate is firmly set.