Evolution of a cookie

I've been looking for a delicious and easy cookie recipe. This recipe reminds me a little bit of my family's Linzer cookies, but looks like a lot less work:
http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017311-almond-walnut-thumbprint-macaroons

On my first attempt, I basically followed the directions (!). I left out the cardamom and used regular water instead of rosewater because I don't keep those ingredients around. Blanching the almonds seemed like a nuisance, so I didn't. I tasted the batter and decided it was already too sweet, so I didn't bother with the raspberry jam. And I didn't have any pistachios either. They turned out pretty delicious despite those issues. And they were even better the next day, having softened up a little.


Even though the raspberry jam feature initially drew me to this recipe, I'm too lazy. I'm also too lazy to use two egg whites plus a whole egg. Maybe two whole eggs works almost as well. Cutting out half the sugar has to be an improvement. And I really like a lemony flavor along with nuttiness, so I added zest of a lemon and a splash of lemon juice.

The result is a much simplified recipe:

• 2 large eggs, beaten 
• 1 ¾ cups/250 grams blanched almonds
• 1 ½ cups/125 grams walnuts 
• ½ cup/100 grams sugar
• zest of one lemon (1 Tbs should be enough)
• splash (1 tsp or 1 Tbs) of lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Put the almonds in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until mostly powdered with a few crunchy bits remaining. Transfer to the bowl with the eggs. 
3. Put the walnuts in the food processor and pulse until mostly powdered. Add the walnuts to the almonds and eggs. 
4. Add the sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice, then mix thoroughly.
5. Cover with a towel and let the mixture sit for at least 8 hours or overnight to dry out a bit (in the refrigerator should be fine).
6. Dampen your hands with a bit of water and scoop up about a tablespoon of the dough at a time, pressing it into walnut-size balls. Place the cookies on the baking sheets about an inch apart and flatten them slightly.
7. Bake for about 25 minutes until golden and firm, rotating the pans halfway through. 

Cabbage salad with Tahini-Lemon Dressing

Today's dinner is a cabbage salad, inspired by ohsheglows, with Tahini-Lemon Dressing.

Here are the ingredients:

• Half a small purple cabbage, shredded
• 3 carrots, shredded
• diced red pepper
• a handful of green onions, green parts only
• half a small bunch of cilantro
• 15 oz can of garbanzo beans
• Tahini-Lemon Dressing

Egg and Spinach Tostadas

We've been using soft corn taco tortillas from the refrigerator section for everything we can lately, including these tostadas.

1. Chop spinach into small pieces, probably by stacking a bunch of small spinach leaves into a tall pile, and cutting them into tiny strips (chiffonade), then making several perpendicular cuts across the pile.
2. Load the spinach into a small, microwave-safe bowl, and heat for ~30 seconds to wilt the spinach.
3. Mix in a pinch of salt, and maybe also some finely grated cheddar cheese (I used a zester, which was a little sticky, but produced a nice result). 
4. Start heating a tortilla on a nonstick skillet on medium heat.
5. Flip the tortilla over, and pile the spinach on it, trying to make a little nest to contain the egg.
6. Crack the egg into the spinach nest.
7. Cover, and continue cooking. Check periodically to see whether the egg looks set. I aimed for a runny yolk, but YMMV. 

If I did this over again, I might mix some hot sauce into the spinach.