Checkerboard Cookies

For some reason, every time I see Checkerboard cookies, they remind me of Alice in Wonderland. I really don’t know why, perhaps there is something cartoonish about them or I expect a little tag next to them saying “Eat me”. However, I did eat them now and I definitely didn’t become little. Or extra tall. Although, I would appreciate a few extra inches as I am really tiny. Perhaps I have had too many of them when I was a baby?

Anyway, this Checkerboard cookies recipe is absolutely amazing. One of the things that distinguishes it from all other cookie recipes I’ve tried so far is the tonka beans. They are a very unusual spice that you don’t see in everyday cooking, but have a unique flavour and scents. That’s rights, scents. I can register the aromas of vanilla, cherry, dark honey, almond, and something spicy—a bit like cinnamon. The beans are flat, dark brown to almost black, wrinkled seeds that come from the giant Cumaru trees in South America. Never use whole Tonka beans in your recipes, just grate them, as they have a very strong taste and you only need a small amount to get the flavour infused into something.

Ingredients for 40-45 Checkerboard Cookies:

• 200 g flour
• 125 g butter
• 100 g sugar
• 90 g ground almonds
• 20 ml milk
• 10 g cocoa
• ½ tonka bean

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºС. Line a baking tin with parchment paper.
2. Put the flour, ground almonds, sugar, milk and butter into a big bowl. Grate the tonka bean over it.
3. Knead the dough by hand and divide it in two equal portions. Leave half of the dough aside and add the cocoa to the other one and knead until it turns a nice, chocolatey colour.
4. Divide each half into 5 equal sized balls.
5. Place one of the dough balls on a clean working surface. Using you hands, make a long roll 1 cm thick.
6. Using rectangular chopping boards, press the roll on both sides to make them flat. Roll it over and press the other two sides as well. This way you will get long cuboids. Repeat the procedure with the rest of the dough balls. 
7. Place three sticks next to each other alternating the colours – white, brown, white (twice) and brown, white, brown (once). Press them with the chopping boards again. Arrange the three triads on top of each other. Press them again. You should get a square if you look from the front.
8. Cut the dough in slices 0,5 cm thick. After each slice, turn the dough over so you won’t spoil its square shape.
9. Place the checkerboard cookies on the baking tray. If it’s necessary, give them a final touch with the chopping boards or a knife to retain their shape.
10. Bake for about 12-15 minutes. Leave them to cool in the baking tray.