I have been making these cookies at Christmas time for many years, ever since my mother-in-law Jane, shared the recipe from Gourmet Magazine in 1994.  I have made a few small adjustments over the years, but they truly are wonderful. I have to admit, I am normally not a fan of vegan desserts as most do require an egg, butter or dairy of some kind. However, these traditional Swiss cookies that are naturally vegan are quite simply delicious. They are loaded with ground almonds, honey and spices.  There is no butter or eggs and they are chewy and not overly sweet. They store well and if you put a slice of apple in the sealed container, they maintain their freshness for several days
Ingredients:

Glaze:

Preheat over to 325 degrees. Line bottom a 9x 13 inch sheet pan with parchment paper

  • MAKE DOUGH:

  • Chop almonds very fine but not ground, preferably in a food processor. In a bowl whisk together flour, spices, baking powder, and baking soda. In a large heavy saucepan heat honey and granulated sugar over moderately low heat, stirring, just until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and stir in kirsch, orange peel, and almonds. Stir in flour mixture and cool dough 5 minutes.
  • With floured hands, press dough evenly into pan. Put dough in oven and immediately reduce temperature to 300 degrees F. Bake dough 25 – 30 mins, or until firm but not dry and hard, and cool in pan on a rack. Invert baked dough onto a cutting board. Discard foil and invert baked dough.

  • MAKE GLAZE:

  • Ina small saucepan heat water with grandulated sugar over moderately low heat, stirring, just until sugar is dissolved. Sift in confectioners’ sugar and stir until comined well.
  • Pour hot glaze on baked dough and brush evenly over dough, brushing continuously until glaze crystallizes and whitens. Let glazed dough stand 10 minutes Trim off and discard edges of dough and cut into 2 x 1 1/2-inch rectangles. Keep cookies in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.