The tyranny of Mother's Day

The other evening at dinner I asked Mom what she wanted to do for Mother's Day. With a gleam in her eye, Mom told us the "fun" things she had in mind, including spreading mulch on her garden and making everyone play Settlers of Catan (Mom even threatened to make Dylan play through FaceTime). This caused Brad to lament the "tyranny of Mother's Day." This morning, Mom even tried to go all Gollum on Cassie and claim the terrarium Cassie received last night as a graduation gift as a Mother's Day present for herself. 

Oppression aside, we had a good day, including taking in Cassie's final performance in a Monticello school musical. 😭 It ended late, so I had to throw together an all Trader Joe's Soy Chorizo Chili, which, much to my surprise, everyone liked. Fortunately, I had made these cookies, which are more like truffles in cookie form, earlier in the day. Mom and Cassie loved them, but Brad said, repeatedly, that they had too much powdered sugar on them, though that didn't stop him from eating his share.

Chocolate Almond Kisses

Adapted from Wanda’s Pie in the Sky via the Toronto Star

225 grams (8 ounces) semisweet or dark chocolate, chopped into pieces no larger than almonds
2 tablespoons (28 grams; 1 ounce) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1¼ cups (120 grams; 4¼ ounces) almond flour or meal or raw almonds ground to the texture of sand in a food processor
2 large eggs, at room temperature
¾ cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon almond extract
½ cup (57 grams; 2 ounces) powdered sugar, sifted

  1. Melt the chocolate in a water bath or the microwave, stirring until smooth. If you’re using the microwave, start with 3 minutes on 50% power. Stir well, then microwave in additional 10- to 15-second increments, stirring well after each zap, until the chocolate is smooth. Add the butter, and stir until melted and smooth. Add the almond flour, and stir until combined.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, salt, and vanilla and almond extracts until pale and thick, about 2 minutes. Fold in the chocolate mixture until combined. Cover with plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
  3. Position the racks in the middle two positions in the oven; heat to 350°F. Line two 18-by-13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
  4. Form the dough into 1-inch balls. I used a #60 cookie scoop to scoop all the dough, then rolled the dough quickly between my palms to form balls. (If your kitchen is very warm, you may want to place half the scooped dough in the fridge to keep it from melting while you work with the other half.) Roll the dough balls in the powdered sugar; it's a pretty thick coating. Place the balls 2 inches apart on the prepared pans (about 18 balls per pan).
  5. Bake until the cookies are puffed slightly, cracked, and dry at the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool completely on the baking sheets set on wire racks. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Makes 3 dozen cookies.