2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature 3 cups plus ½ cup confectioners sugar 1 egg yolk ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 3 cups cake flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt ¾ cup slivered almonds Preheat the oven to 350° F In a non-stick pan over medium heat, toast the almonds, stirring frequently, until they are a light golden brown. Set them aside on a plate to cool. When the almonds have cooled, place in them in a food processor and pulse until the largest pieces are about the size of a lentil (around 20 pulses). Using the whip attachment on an electric mixer, beat the butter for 2 minutes on low speed. Shift the mixer to medium speed and add ½ cup of powdered sugar. Beat at medium speed until very light and fluffy, about 10-15 minutes. Add the egg yolk, vanilla extract and continue mixing until thoroughly incorporated. In another bowl sift the flour and mix well with the baking powder and salt, then add the chopped almonds. Replace the whip attachment on the mixer with the paddle attachment and set to medium speed. Add the flour mixture to the butter and mix for a few minutes until dough begins to form into a ball. You may need to stop the mixer occasionally and use a spatula to push the dough down from the side of the bowl towards the bottom. If needed add a bit more flour. The dough will be slightly sticky. Place the dough in the refrigerator for 15 minutes (important). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and make small round shapes about the size of a walnut, then flatten the tops a bit using your fingers. Another common shape is a crescent. Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until just starting to turn light brown. Be careful not to over bake otherwise the cookies will be hard instead of having a melt-in-your-mouth quality. Also, they will be covered by powdered sugar so don’t worry about the color. Sift about half of the 3 cups of powdered sugar over wax paper and gently transfer the cookies to it. Sift the remaining 1½ cups of powdered sugar over the top to cover the cookies. Let stand until cool, then store in a tightly covered container. Makes around 25 cookies Notes: Kourabiedes can be stored in airtight containers outside of the refrigerator for about 3 weeks.