Florentines

These European cookies are unbelievably delicious and practically irresistible. They keep longer than regular cookies, so they can be stored for quite sometime (approximately 2 weeks in a tightly sealed container), so they make excellent gifts. And not only do they taste amazing, but they look elegant and lacey. Virtually every aspect of these Florentines is perfect, right down to the light chewiness from the cookie, the crunch from the almonds, and the chocolate that melts in your mouth. If made for parties, be sure to make a large batch because your guests will not be able to resist these!

Ingredients:
1 cup of slivered almonds, roughly chopped
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup butter (using real butter really does make a difference in the final product, but if you must, margarine is acceptable)
2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons of light corn syrup (corn syrup makes them chewy, but an acceptable substitute could be another thick syrupy substance such as honey)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
8 ounces of bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips (if using chocolate in bar form, simply chop it)

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
2) In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together the almonds and the flour until well combined and set aside for now.
3) In a small saucepan, melt the butter on medium-low heat (if the heat is too high the butter could brown), and whisk in the corn syrup. Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the sugar and vanilla until well combined.
4) Pour the warm sugar mixture over the almond-flour mixture and stir together until there are no lumps and the batter is consistent and well combined.
5) Drop teaspoonfuls of batter onto the silicone mat or parchment lined baking sheet with plenty of room (at least 3 1/2 inches) between eachother because they will spread out to be much bigger and very thin. If you do not give them enough room between eachother you will get one sheet of goo (trust me, I went there on my first batch). And bake for 7-10 minutes (it really does depend on your oven so watch the cookies closely!) or until the edges of the cookies begin to become an amber color. As soon as this is achieved remove the cookies from the oven and allow the pan to cool on a wire rack for at least 5 minutes before removing cookies.
6) Once you have your cooled cookies, you can melt your chocolate. Place chocolate chips in a double boiler (or in a heat-proof bowl over a saucepan with about an inch of simmering water) and stir the chips until the chocolate is melted, which should take just a few minutes. After all of chocolate is melted, allow to cool for 1 minute.
7) Now you are ready to assemble your Florentines. If you have ever made a sandwich cookie before, this is basically the same idea. Take two of the cookies and spoon about a 1/2 teaspoon of melted chocolate onto one cookie, and place the other cookie over it, therefore sandwiching them together. And Viola! You now have a Florentine! Repeat with the rest of the cookies and allow to sit for about a half hour so the chocolate can set or just chill them in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.

*If you have any questions regarding the how to make these cookies or how do do any of the techniques involved in the recipe, just post a comment below and I'll explain as much as I can or I will post an instructional video!*