Melting Almond Cookies with Cinnamon

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup almonds with skins
• 1 and 1/4 cups premium flour
• 1/4 cup rice flour
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 200 g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1.5 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Preparation:

1. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 350°F (175°C). Place the almonds on a baking sheet and bake on the bottom rack until toasted, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool completely, then pulse in a food processor until very finely ground (do not process to a paste). Add the wheat and rice flours, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and salt. Whisk to combine.
2. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, beat the butter with 1/2 cup powdered sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Stir in the vanilla extract. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour mixture. Place the dough on a large sheet of plastic wrap, shape it into a rectangle, and wrap it. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
3. Roll the dough between two pieces of plastic wrap into an 8 x 9-inch rectangle (about 0.8 cm thick). If the dough begins to crack at the edges, pinch it with your fingers. Remove the wrap. Turn the dough with the short side facing you and cut lengthwise into eight 1-inch-wide strips, then cut the strips crosswise into 1.5-inch rectangles (48 total; if the dough becomes too soft, refrigerate for 15 minutes). Place the rectangles 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets.
4. Bake, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until the cookies are set around the edges, 16-20 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, in a shallow bowl, combine the remaining 1 cup powdered sugar with 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Gently roll the hot cookies in the sugar mixture to coat them completely, then transfer them to wire racks to cool completely. Once cooled, roll the cookies again in the powdered sugar mixture.