Chocolate almond cookies

Lucky dip: chocolate almond cookies.

Lucky dip: chocolate almond cookies. Photograph: Jonathan Lovekin/The Observer

Remove the cookies from the oven when they are pale gold, and very soft. They will firm a little on cooling while retaining a soft centre. They have a delicious fragility to them, so a little care is needed when you dip them in melted chocolate.

Makes about 24 biscuits. Ready in 1 hour, plus chilling time

whole blanched almonds 125g

butter 135g

sea salt ½ tsp

soft brown sugar 135g

golden caster sugar 100g

egg 1

plain flour 190g

baking powder 1 tsp

ground almonds 60g

To finish:

dark chocolate 90g

flaked almonds 3 tbsp

Toast the blanched almonds in a shallow pan over a moderate heat, watching them carefully and tossing them around the pan, until they are fragrant and golden brown. (They will take several minutes to take on any colour at all, then suddenly scorch, so keep an eye on them.) Remove from the heat and set aside.

The cookies will firm a little on cooling while retaining a soft centre

Put the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, add the salt and the sugars and beat until light and coffee coloured.

Finely chop the toasted almonds, leaving some pieces a little larger. Break the egg into a small bowl and beat briefly with a fork, then add to the butter and sugar, beating the whole time until well combined. Sift together the flour and baking powder, then introduce to the mixer bowl along with the ground and chopped toasted almonds.

Stop mixing as soon as the ingredients are thoroughly combined, then roll into balls weighing roughly 35g each. Space well apart on baking sheets and place in the fridge for a good 2 hours. (Don’t skip this. It is important for the texture of the cookies.)

Heat the oven to 160C/gas mark 2–3 and bake for 15 minutes, until they have spread. They should be a little thicker in the middle than at the edges. Let them settle for 5 minutes before lifting from the baking sheet with a palette knife and moving to a cooling rack.

Once the cookies have cooled, melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, then remove from the heat. Take each cookie carefully in a pair of kitchen tongs or between your fingers and dip one edge into the melted chocolate. Place on the greaseproof paper.

Put the flaked almonds in shallow pan and brown lightly over a moderate heat, shaking regularly. Scatter the almonds over the warm, melted chocolate, and leave to cool.