Soft Almond Sugar Cookies

By cecelia26_

Soft Almond Sugar Cookies are unbelievably soft, slightly chewy, packed with almond flavor so good you don't even need frosting!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup shortening
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 2 3/4 cup cake flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• Coarse sanding sugar

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350°F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together sugar, butter and shortening until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add eggs and almond extract and mix just until combined.

In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and beat on medium speed just until flour is incorporated. Turn dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap, wrap tightly, place in an air-tight container and refrigerate for one hour or overnight (which is what I did).

Roll dough into 2 inch balls, about the size of a golf ball and roll in sanding sugar. Place on baking sheets about two inches apart and bake for 12 minutes, rotating pans and switching racks halfway through.

Let cool on pans for two minutes and then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. Store in an air-tight container.