Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Pastry blender or your clean hands
• •Parchment-lined baking sheets
• •Pastry brush for egg wash
• •Wire cooling rack

Instructions

1. 1

   Combine dry ingredients

   Whisk together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. The almond flour tends to clump, so break up any lumps with your fingers as you go. This takes thirty seconds of attention but prevents pockets of raw almond flour in your finished cookies.

2. 2

   Cut in the fat

   Add the cold cubed butter (or lard, if you want true Chinatown bakery authenticity) to the flour mixture. Using a pastry blender or your fingertips, work the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse sand with some pea-sized pieces remaining. This should take two to three minutes. The mixture will look dry and shaggy. That's correct.

   Lard produces a more tender, traditional cookie. Butter gives a richer flavor. Both work beautifully.
3. 3

   Add wet ingredients

   Drop the egg yolk and almond extract into the center of the flour mixture. Stir with a fork until the dough begins to clump together. It will seem too dry at first. Keep working it. Press the dough against the side of the bowl with the fork. Within a minute, it will come together into a rough mass. If it absolutely refuses to hold together, add water by the half-teaspoon until it does, but this should rarely be necessary.

4. 4

   Shape the cookies

   Scoop tablespoon-sized portions of dough and roll each into a ball between your palms. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them two inches apart. Flatten each ball gently with your palm until about half an inch thick. The edges may crack slightly. That's fine and even traditional. These are rustic cookies, not macarons.

5. 5

   Add the almonds

   Press one whole blanched almond firmly into the center of each cookie. Push it about halfway into the dough. The almond should sit securely but remain mostly visible. This is the cookie's crown, its symbol of good fortune. Make it count.

   Traditional bakers arrange all the almonds pointing the same direction. This attention to uniformity honors the symbolism and looks stunning on a gift plate.
6. 6

   Chill the dough

   Refrigerate the shaped cookies for at least 15 minutes while you preheat your oven to 325°F (165°C). Cold dough bakes more evenly and holds its shape better. If you're making these ahead, the shaped unbaked cookies can stay refrigerated overnight or frozen for up to a month.

7. 7

   Apply egg wash

   Brush the top of each cookie lightly with the egg wash, using a pastry brush with a gentle touch. Cover the surface and the exposed part of the almond, but don't let the wash pool around the edges or drip onto the parchment. This glaze is what gives the cookies their characteristic golden shine, reminiscent of actual coins.

8. 8

   Bake to golden perfection

   Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through, until the cookies are golden on top and slightly darker around the edges. The surface should look dry and set, with fine cracks appearing around the almond. The cookies will feel soft when you touch them but firm up as they cool. Resist the urge to overbake. These should stay pale gold, not deep brown.

9. 9

   Cool completely

   Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack. They're fragile when warm and will break if you move them too soon. Once completely cool (give them at least twenty minutes), they'll have that signature sandy, crumbly texture that shatters when you bite through. The almond flavor intensifies as they cool.

Chef Tips

• •Store these cookies in an airtight tin at room temperature for up to two weeks. They actually improve after a day or two as the almond flavor mellows and deepens.
• •For gift-giving, layer cookies between sheets of wax paper in a decorative tin. Red and gold tins are traditional for Lunar New Year.
• •If you can find it, substitute a tablespoon of the all-purpose flour with rice flour for an even more delicate, sandy texture closer to traditional Chinese bakery versions.
• •The egg wash is essential for both color and symbolism. Skip it, and you lose the golden coin appearance that makes these cookies meaningful for the new year.
• •Blanched almonds (white, with skins removed) are traditional. You can use raw almonds with skins for a more rustic look, but blanched almonds toast to a prettier golden color.

Advance Preparation

• •Shaped unbaked cookies can be refrigerated on the baking sheet, covered, for up to 24 hours before baking.
• •Freeze shaped unbaked cookies on a sheet until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag for up to 2 months. Bake directly from frozen, adding 2 to 3 minutes to the baking time.
• •Baked cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 weeks, making them ideal for holiday baking schedules.
• •The dough can be mixed and refrigerated in a ball, wrapped tightly, for up to 3 days before shaping and baking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 40g)