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Crispy Cookie Bites

These twice-baked cookies, called mandelbrot (German for almond bread), are a Jewish holiday favorite. They have also become a Christmas favorite for Mary Chomenko Hinckley, ever since a Jewish friend shared her recipe.

Ingredients

3 tbsp. plus 1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup vegetable or canola oil
3 large eggs
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup chopped almonds (or chocolate chips, raisins, chopped walnuts, other nuts or a combination)

Instructions

First, mix the 3 tablespoons of sugar with the cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, mix the oil and 1 cup of sugar with a wooden spoon. Stir in the eggs, one at a time.
In a separate bowl, mix the flour with the baking powder and salt. Gradually stir the flour mixture, one cup at a time, into the liquids. Stir in the vanilla extract and the nuts, chips or raisins.
Gather the dough into a ball, cover with plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour. Heat the oven to 350 degrees, and grease two baking sheets or line them with parchment.
Divide the chilled dough into four equal portions and shape into logs about 10 inches long. Place the logs, at least 2 inches apart, on one of the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle the logs with cinnamon sugar.
Bake on the center rack for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven. Once cool enough to handle, cut each log crosswise into 14 pieces, about 3/4-inch wide. Arrange the cookies, flat-side down, on the cookie sheets.
Return the cookies to the oven, and bake for 18 more minutes or until the edges begin to brown and the cookies are golden. Once cool, the cookies can be stored in airtight containers or frozen in zippered plastic bags. Makes 56 cookies.
Variations: Replace the almonds with chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. Experiment by substituting other favorite ingredients, such as raisins or dried cranberries or cherries.