Cookie Swap!

For someone who has about two minutes of spare time a day, you might wonder why I'd want to participate in a cookie swap. Usually a cookie swap entails shopping, baking, packaging, getting showered, dressed, and driving your butt and your pretty little cookies to someone's house. That is, if you aren't hosting the swap, which is another whole list of scrubbed and sparkly to-dos. As much as I adore the baking and getting together part of such a party, the getting dressed in holiday finery is just too much for me to bear lately. Luckily this is the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap, organized by Lyndsay of Love and Olive Oil and Julie of The Little Kitchen. It's a swap by mail. No clothing necessary. Sweet!

I knew I had to make my favorite holiday cookies. My Aunt Patti's almond cookies are the best thing on her huge cookie trays, and they have tough competition. She makes about 12 kinds, but every year I squirrel away at least 12 almond cookies. It's shameful. They are amazing with a cup of tea at dessert, perfect dunked in morning coffee, and good as a quickie snack when a carrot stick won't cut it. This is an old sercet-ish family recipe passed down among the aunts, so don't tell anyone I told you.

Patti's Almond Cookies

Ingredients:
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. almond extract
1/2 c. oil
2 Tbls. cold water
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
10 oz. slivered almonds
6 oz. chopped almonds
1 egg white, lightly beaten (for wash)
sugar or melting chocolate (optional)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat first 6 ingredients until creamy. Sift in cinnamon, flour, and baking powder and mix by hand until well combined. Fold in almonds. Shape dough into 3 small loaves on a baking sheet lined with parchment and brush with egg wash. Sprinkle with sugar and bake 20 - 25 minutes or until loaves are golden. Cool slightly and slice each loaf into bars. If desired, drizzle with melted chocolate.

And a HUGE thank you so the lovely ladies who took the time to bake and ship treats to me:
Renee of Casa del Kuchen whose Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies were gone in two days,
Amilia of Just Everyday Me whose Chocolate hip Cookie Dough Bars with Pretzel Crust combined the perfect amount of salty sweet,
and Erin of Big Fat Baker whose fabulous Rolo Stuffed Chocolate Cookies came in a box that sang carols to me. I know!

Thursday the round up of all of the (500 plus!) swappers will be posted, but you can visit the Facebook Page for most of the recipe links already!