Using slightly rounded teaspoonful for each cookie, roll dough between damp palms of hands into balls. Place on prepared baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Flatten each ball slightly to 1¼-inch-diameter round. Gently press a few sliced almonds into each cookie.
Bake cookies, 1 baking sheet at a time, until light golden, about 18 minutes. Slide parchment with cookies onto racks and cool completely.
Stir preserves and 2 tablespoons water in heavy small saucepan over medium-high heat until mixture boils. Reduce heat and simmer until mixture thickens slightly, about 4 minutes. Cool slightly.
Spoon ½ teaspoon raspberry preserves onto bottom side of 1 cookie. Top with second cookie, bottom side down. Press to adhere. Repeat with remaining cookies and preserves.
DO AHEAD: Can be made ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week, or freeze up to 1 month. Cookies may soften slightly.
Sift powdered sugar over cookies.
It is especially important to use parchment paper when baking these Florentine-style lace cookies—they are a cross between a cookie and candy, so they tend to be sticky and would otherwise be difficult to remove from the baking sheet. Lining baking sheets with parchment paper creates a nonstick surface, protects the cookie bottoms from burning, and ensures easy cleanup. Makes about 1½ dozen
Cookies
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
⅓ cup sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
⅓ cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup coarsely ground pecans
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Filling
1 cup powdered sugar
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon orange juice
¾ teaspoon finely grated orange peel
COOKIES: Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 heavy large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Stir butter, sugar, and corn syrup in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth. Bring to boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in flour. Add pecans and vanilla; stir to combine.
Drop dough by teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until bubbling and lightly browned, about 11 minutes. Cool on sheets 10 minutes. Carefully transfer to rack; cool completely.
FILLING: Whisk all ingredients in medium bowl until smooth. Spread 1 teaspoon filling onto bottom of 1 cookie. Top with second cookie, bottom side down, pressing lightly to adhere. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 days ahead. Store between sheets of waxed paper in airtight container at room temperature.
Tender crescent-shaped pastry encloses a filling that resembles marzipan in texture, but has a delicate pistachio flavor. The filling, pastry, and aromatic vanilla sugar can all be made ahead, but the cookies are best eaten the same day they’re baked. Makes 2 dozen
Vanilla Sugar
¾ cup sugar
1 2-inch piece vanilla bean, split lengthwise, chopped
Filling
1 cup unsalted natural pistachios
1 large egg white
1 drop of vanilla extract
1 drop of almond extract
Dough
1¼ cups sifted unbleached all purpose flour (sifted, then measured)
⅛ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
⅓ cup sour cream
1 large egg yolk
1 egg yolk, beaten to blend with 1 teaspoon water (for glaze)
VANILLA SUGAR: Mix sugar and vanilla bean in processor 2 minutes, stopping every 30 seconds to scrape down sides of bowl. Spoon into jar and seal tightly. Let stand at room temperature at least 1 day.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store at room temperature.
FILLING: Sift vanilla sugar through fine strainer set over small bowl. Combine pistachios, 2 tablespoons vanilla sugar, egg white, vanilla extract, and almond extract in processor. Using on/off turns, blend until chunky paste forms, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Transfer filling to bowl.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.
DOUGH: Place flour and salt in processor. Add butter; using on/off turns, cut in until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add sour cream and egg yolk; using on/off turns, blend until small moist clumps form. Turn dough out onto plastic wrap; flatten into disk. Wrap and chill at least 2 hours.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Line 2 heavy large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Lightly butter parchment. Divide dough disk in half. Wrap and chill 1 half. Shape remaining dough half into round. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar on work surface. Place dough round atop sugar. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar over. Roll dough out to 12-inch round, about ⅛ inch thick, sprinkling top and bottom of dough round with 2 tablespoons more vanilla sugar while rolling. Using fluted pastry cutter, cut dough round into 12 wedges. Shape half of pistachio filling by slightly rounded teaspoonfuls into 12 ovals. Set 1 oval at base of each wedge. Roll wedges up from base to point to form cylinder. Arrange cylinders on prepared baking sheet. Form into horseshoes (crescents will form while baking). Repeat with remaining dough half, vanilla sugar, and filling. Bake 15 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar into glaze.
Brush glaze lightly over hot crescents. Continue baking until light golden, about 5 minutes. Slide parchment with crescents onto rack and cool 5 minutes. Remove crescents from parchment and cool completely on rack.
DO AHEAD: Crescents can be made 1 day ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.
These shortbread-like cookies are inspired by the Austrian Linzertorte, which also features a jam filling inside a buttery crust flavored with nuts and lemon peel. Dividing the dough into four equal parts and working with only one portion at a time ensures that the dough remains properly chilled for easy rolling. The cookies work just as well with raspberry, cherry, or plum preserves. Makes about 4 dozen
1 cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked
1 tablespoon plus ⅔ cup sugar
14 tablespoons (1¾ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
½ teaspoon lemon extract
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
2⅔ cups unbleached all purpose flourApricot preservesPowdered sugar