Cookies, Bars and Biscotti

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Mexican Wedding Cookies
A light cookie covered in powdered sugar.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Cream the butter until very light, and add the sugar a bit at a time until incorporated. Add vanilla, and continue beating until light and fluffy. Add in the flour and stir until well combined. Stir in the nuts last. Form spoonfuls of dough into 1" balls and place on baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes until just pale golden in color, do not overbake, and let sit on baking sheet for 3 minutes. Then roll the warm cookies in powdered sugar to completely coat them.

Source 19.

Cinnamon Stars
These cookies are cut-outs of stars with a cinnamon glaze before baking. These cookies are started the day before baking.

On the day before baking, beat whites and salt until soft peaks form. Add in sugar 2 tablespoons at a time until whites are stiff. Mix in the cinnamon, and reserve 1/3 cup of this in a small bowl. Cover and place refrigerator for next day. Add the ground almonds to the remaining egg whites and cover and refrigerate this mixture, also.

On the day of baking, take out almond mixture and roll out half of it to about 1/4 inch thickness. Cut with star cutter and place on baking sheets, repeat with remaining dough and let dough stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 300°F and brush the stars with the reserved cinnamon-egg white mixture. Bake for 20 minutes. Let cookies rest on baking sheet for 3 minutes before removing to cooling rack.

Source 20.