Ingredients
for the Cookies
3 egg whites
250 grams powdered sugar
6 tablespoons instant cappuccino mix (such as the International Coffees)
2 tablespoons instant coffee
400 grams blanched ground almonds (or almond meal/almond flour)
for the Glaze/Drizzle
1 11.5 oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon espresso powder
4 tablespoons butter
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350F. Grind the almonds as fine as possible; essentially the almonds will become your flour.
Separate the eggs into a small bowl, discarding the yolks or save for another purpose. Whisk until you have firm peaks, but do not over-whisk. This can be a very fine line. If your egg whites start to separate or become lumpy, start over as they are unrecoverable. Separate out 4 tables spoons of the whisked egg whites and set aside in a small bowl.
Reserve 3 tablespoons of the powdered sugar. Fold in the remaining powdered sugar and the instant coffee. Be gentle with the egg white mixture, so that it does not deflate. Add in the ground almonds. If the dough mass is still too gooey add in a little more ground almonds.
Take half the dough and using the wax paper over the top of it, roll it out onto the working surface (alternatively, you can roll out the dough between two pieces of wax paper). Cut out with heart shaped cookie cutter and place on a cookie sheet lined with silpat or onto parchment paper. Silpat or parchment paper is almost imperative in this recipe.
Fold together the remainder of the stiff egg whites and sugar. The consistency should be of frosting. Using the pastry brush, liberally “paint” each of the cookies with the sugar coating.
Bake 8-10 minutes or until the white starts to get just a little bit toasted.
To decorate, melt semisweet chocolate chips, espresso powder and butter in a double boiler; careful not to let the mixture break; drizzle over cookies. Let stand until set.
