by EMILY TEEL photos CARSON DOWNING food styling CHARLIE W ORTHINGTON
Tender, golden saffron buns are an essential teatime snack in the long twilight hours of winter in Sweden. Called lussekatter, the S-shape buns are the most recognizable, but this version, with saffron dough twisted around a sweet almond filling that’s scented with a whisper of orange zest, is particularly delightful.
To make our Holiday Cookie Latte, we start by toasting almonds and using them to infuse simple syrup. Stash the extra in the fridge for splashing into coffee, hot cocoa, or warm milk, or for drizzling over pancakes in place of maple syrup.
Think of this as a copycat version of the seasonal latte at your favorite coffee shop—but you don’t need an espresso maker to pull it off. Instead we combine brewed coffee, a homemade toasted almond syrup, and white chocolate-infused milk. A dash of vanilla and whipped cream top it off.
If you’re looking for a stunner of a Christmas morning breakfast, consider this dish a contender. We tore plain grocery store croissants into pieces and covered them in almond-scented custard and melting chocolate. A chewy crowning layer of frangipane (almond pastry filling) contrasts with the silky casserole.
Perhaps you know jam-filled Linzer cookies, but have you met the mega version? Linzer torte is an Austrian tart with hazelnuts or almonds in the pastry and a jam filling. Our version, baked in a shallow tart pan, yields tender slices perfect with a warm drink on a cold day. For the top, we created a cutout option you can customize for any occasion to swap for the traditional lattice.
Chocolate crinkle cookies, named for the crackly pattern they get from being rolled in powdered sugar before baking, are a holiday classic. We updated our recipe to showcase almond’s distinctive flavor instead. The edges have the toasty snap of an amaretti biscuit, but the centers remain pleasantly chewy with the addition of almond flour.
Sweet cherry preserves and the floral fragrance of almonds pair beautifully in our marzipan-topped cookie bars. Almonds flavor the buttery shortbread base, crumble, and glaze. The generous yield makes the bars a great choice for a cookie swap.
Half an hour is enough time to put together a plate of these two-bite treats packed with all the flavor of an almond croissant from a bakery. A sheet of store-bought puff pastry supplies the flaky layers, and a filling of almond flour, brown sugar, egg, and butter caramelizes in the oven.