These chewy almond cookies are the ultimate fall cookie. Made with a spiced cookie dough and a soft, sweet almond filling, they'll make your whole house smell like autumn. Perfect for family weekends, holiday baking, or sharing with someone special.
Why you will love these almond cookies
- These cookies are chewy, flavored with speculaas spice mix, and have an amazing, soft, almond filling.
- They are super easy to make, no need to use a food processor!
- This recipe makes six large cookies, but you can easily adjust the recipe if you need more.
Ingredients
Almond paste: To make the center, you need almond paste. It is much like frangipane but less creamy. You can buy it ready-made or make your own almond paste with whole almonds, sugar, and egg.
Speculaas spice mix: Speculaas spice mix is a warm, fragrant spice mix that you need to make speculaas. You can use a ready-made blend, but I highly recommend making your own speculaas spices. This will give you more control over the flavor (store-bought mixes can be a little bland) and is much cheaper if you buy the spices in bulk!
Flour: All-purpose flour works perfectly for these almond cookies. You could also use gluten-free flour.
Brown sugar: This is one of the key ingredients for the dough. Brown sugar adds a rich caramel flavor and a deep brown color. If you don't have it at hand, you can easily make your own brown sugar with a little bit of molasses.
How to make almond cookies
When you make these almond cookies, it is best to start with the dough. This will give the dough enough time to rest, and you can make the almond filling while you wait. When the dough is ready, roll it out until it is about ¼ inch thick and cut out your cookies.
Scoop small portions of the almond paste on half of your cookies. Don't add too much because you need to seal the edges before they go in the oven.
Place the cookies without almond paste on top and seal the edges by pressing them down with a fork, and decorate your almond cookies with a whole almond.
Brush your almond cookies with egg wash and bake them for about 15 minutes until golden. Let them cool on your baking tray for a few minutes before transferring them to your cooling rack, because they are still a bit soft after baking.
My tips for the best almond cookies
- Use your hands to make the dough. The warmth of your hands will help to soften the butter and create a soft, supple dough that won't break when you roll it out.
- Make your own almond paste. Ready-made almond paste can be a little dry, so I like to make my own with whole almonds, but you can use both.
- Let the dough rest in the fridge for 1-2 days to let the flavors develop, and it gives the dough a deep brown color.
Frequently asked questions
You can make the filling with any nut you like, but it will alter the flavor.
Yes!! Use a plant-based butter or margarine and almond milk to replace the dairy and use the milk as an egg wash. If you need to soften the almond paste, you can add ¼ cup of apple sauce instead of the egg.
Letting the dough rest gives the spices more time to develop their flavor and the dough to get the deep brown color you want. This is why a lot of bakers in the Netherlands let their dough rest for 2-3 days when they use speculaas spices!
Storage
These almond cookies will keep for about five days at room temperature. Wrap them in plastic wrap or place them in a container to prevent them from drying out. Frozen, they last for about six months.
If you have any leftover dough or almond paste, you can also freeze them! When you're ready to bake more almond cookies, simply let them thaw in the fridge and continue with the recipe the next day. You can also freeze assembled but unbaked cookies!
More cookies to try next
Almond Cookies with Speculaas
Ingredients
For the almond cookie dough
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 stick butter
- 2-3 tablespoons speculaas spice mix
- 3 tablespoons milk
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 whole almonds *optional for decorating
For the almond filling
- 1 cup almond paste
- 1 egg set a little bit aside to give your almond cookies an egg wash
Instructions
- Add the dry ingredients to a bowl and give them a quick mix.
- With a stand mixer or cold hands, knead in your butter and milk until you have a smooth, firm dough.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for at least an hour, preferably overnight.
- Loosen your almond paste by mixing in ½ egg.
- Let it aside while you roll out your dough.
- Take the dough out of the fridge and give it a quick knead.
- Roll it out until it is ¼ inch thick.
- Cut out 12 large cookies and add a scoop of almond paste onto 6 of your cookies.
- Place the other six cookies on top and seal the edges by pressing them down with a fork.
- Decorate each cookie with a whole almond and brush them with egg wash.
- Bake your cookies for 12-15 minutes in the center of the oven.
- Let the almond cookies cook for a few minutes on your baking tray before transferring them to your cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour. This will make it a lot easier to cut out your cookies.
- Make your own almond paste for the best flavor.
- These chewy almond cookies will keep for up to five days at room temperature and for six months in the freezer.
- You can substitute the speculaas spice mix for cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, or apple pie spice!