Florentine Lace Cookies: Extra Fancy. Easy to Bake!

Florentines are malleable and can be shaped after they come out of the oven. The batter consists of cane sugar, light corn syrup (or honey or maple syrup), heavy cream. Butter, all heated until it forms a bubbly caramel and then poured into the dry components—traditionally nothing more than sliced or chopped almonds.

Florentines are malleable and can be shaped after they come out of the oven. Often the back side is coated in chocolate with a wavy decorative pattern (which can be produced with the tines of a fork).

First, I swapped out the almonds for pistachios and added lemon zest, though hazelnuts or even peanuts would be interesting. For the next batch, I used sesame seeds, orange zest, and honey—the latter in place of corn syrup. While I particularly like the marriage of sesame seeds, honey, and orange zest (it reminds me of one of my favorite Greek sweets, pasteli ), they were a bit crispier and thinner than the ones made with corn syrup, which were slightly chewy but still crisp in texture.

Pulse nuts in a food processor until finely chopped (but not to a powder). 3. Combine sesame seeds (or chopped nuts), flour, zest, and salt in a bowl and set aside. 4.

In a small saucepan, bring the sugar, cream, corn syrup (or honey), and butter to a boil, and continue to cook for an additional minute until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. 5. Pour the hot sugar mixture over the nut-flour (or sesame seed) mixture and stir to combine.

Place on a baking sheet about 3 to 4 inches apart (they will spread out quite a bit). Bake in the middle part of your oven until thin and golden, about 10 to 11 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. 7.

Add an inch or two of water to a pot and bring to a simmer. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and place over the pot of simmering water (it should fit snugly).

Stir the chocolate with a spatula until it melts. Take off the heat and cool slightly, about 5 minutes. 9.

With a small offset spatula, spread the chocolate on the smooth backside of the Florentines. Let cool slightly and then, if you like, you can create a decorative pattern by taking a fork and creating a zigzag pattern across the chocolate.

Can be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for several weeks.