Here are two recipes that are a little different, that have been family favorite for years. Both recipes freeze well (in a single layer) after they are baked. -Grainlady CHERRY-POPPY SEED TWINKS (Source: Pillsbury - M.m.m.m More Cookies 1987) 1 c. powdered sugar 1 c. softened butter 1 t. vanilla 1 egg 2 c. Pillsbury's BEST All-Purpose or Unbleached Flour 2 T. poppy seed 1/2 t. salt 1/3-1/2 c. cherry preserves Heat oven to 300°F. In large bowl, beat powdered sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg; blend well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. Stir in flour, poppy seed and salt; mix well. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. With finger, make imprint in center of each cookie. Fill each imprint with about 1/2 t. preserves. Bake at 300°F for 20-25 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheets. Makes 2-1/2 dozen cookies. ---------------- These are a little healthier and heartier... OAT BRAN THUMBPRINT COOKIES (source: Betty Crocker - 110 MORE Cookie Recipes - 1989) 3/4 c. margarine or butter, softened 1/2 c. packed brown sugar 1/2 t. vanilla 2 egg whites (or 1 egg) 1 c. oat bran 1 c. all-purpose flour 1/2 c. quick-cooking oats 1/4 t. salt 1/4 c. finely chopped walnuts 2 T. oat bran Preserves Heat oven to 375°F. Mix margarine (or butter), brown sugar, vanilla and egg whites (or whole egg) in large bowl. Stir in 1 c. oat bran, the flour, oats and salt. Shape dough into 1-1/4-inch balls. Mix walnuts and 2 T. oat bran in small bowl. Roll balls in walnut mixture. Place about 1-inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet; press thumb in center of each. Fill thumbprints with preserves. Bake until light brown, about 10-minutes. Remove immediately from cookie sheet. Makes about 3 dozen cookies. 1 cookie: 100 calories; protein 1g; carbohydrates 13g; fat 5g; sodium 65 mg; cholesterol 0mg (if using margarine and egg whites).

Thank you all. I ended up toasting the flour on the stove top, as I have a history of burning nuts that are in the oven. The bars are delicious, very rich and the recipe makes a lot. Here it is if you are interested: Almond-Apricot Bars Recipe By : King Arthur Flour Serving Size : 70 Categories : Desserts Cookies Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- Crust 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar -- (12 3/4 ounces) 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar -- (2 1/4 ounces) 1/2 cup butter -- (1 stick, 4 ounces) 1 teaspoon butter vanilla flavor or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 3/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 large egg yolks (reserve whites) 1 tablespoon milk 1 3/4 cups unbleached All-Purpose Flour -- (7 1/2 ounces) Apricot Filling 1 cup shredded or diced apricots -- (5 ounces) 1/2 cup water -- (4 ounces) 1/4 cup sugar -- (1 7/8 ounces) 2 tablespoons brandy or rum (optional) -- (7/8 ounce) Almond Filling 2 cups toasted almond flour -- (6 1/2 ounces) 1 cup sugar -- (7 1/4 ounces) 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 large egg + 2 egg whites 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon almond extract 2 tablespoons unbleached All-Purpose Flour -- (1/2 ounce) Chocolate and Cream Topping 1 1/3 cups bittersweet chocolate -- (8 ounces) 3/4 cup heavy cream -- (6 ounces) Crust: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the sugars, butter and vanilla until fluffy. Add the baking powder, salt, egg yolks and milk, and beat well. Stir in the flour and mix just until a smooth dough forms. Press the dough into the bottom of a lightly greased 9 x 13-inch pan. Bake the crust for 10 to 12 minutes in a preheated 350°F oven, until it's lightly browned. Remove it from the oven, and set it aside to cool. Apricot Filling: Mix all of the ingredients together in a small saucepan or microwave-safe bowl. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring once or twice, and then set it aside to cool slightly. Almond Filling: Stir all of the ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl; the mixture will be fairly stiff and sticky. Set it aside. Assembly and Baking: Spread the apricot layer over the baked crust, and then spread the almond layer on top of the apricot layer. Bake the bars in a preheated 375°F oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until they feel set -- a fingerprint will remain when pressed in the middle. Remove the bars from the oven, and cool them for 1 hour. Topping: Melt the chocolate and cream together in a small saucepan set over low heat, stirring frequently, or in the microwave on low power. Continue to stir the mixture until it's smooth, then spread it atop the bars. Let the bars cool for several hours (or overnight) before cutting into squares; no need to refrigerate, just cover the pan after the chocolate has set. Yield: 35 (1 3/4-inch square) bars. Description: "This recipe reprinted from The Baking Sheet (r) (Vol. XII, No. 1, Holiday 2000 issue)."

Well, I suppose you and I can experiment together with the brownie recipe I posted about on CF! See link below. But how about these? OK, you miss out on the chunky bits, but the flavour will be the same. Chocolate Hazelnut Slice 125g dark chocolate, melted 4 egg whites 1/4 cup castor sugar 1 cup packaged ground hazelnuts 2 tablespoons plain flour Line base and sides of a 20x30cm lamington tin with foil. Spread chocolate over the foil on base, refrigerate about 10 minutes. Beat egg whites in small bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form, gradually add sugar, beating until dissolved between additions. Gently fold in nuts and flour- spread over chocolate base. Bake in moderate oven about 20 minutes or until firm, cool about 20 minutes. Spread with topping, bake further 15 minutes- cool in pan. Refrigerate several hours or until firm before cutting. Topping: 200g dark chocolate, chopped 125g butter 1/2 cup castor sugar 4 egg yolks 1 tablespoon Grand Marnier, optional Melt chocolate in heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water; cool 10 minutes. Beat butter and sugar in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well between additions. Add liqueur and chocolate, beat until just combined, gradually add sugar. Hazelnut Biscuits 1 cup roasted, peeled hazelnuts 1/2 cup butter, unsalted 1 cup sugar grated lemon rind 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 cups plain flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt Preheat oven to 180C. Coarsely chop the hazelnuts and set aside. Cream the butter until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and lemon rind and beat until the mixture is very light and fluffy, about two minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then beat in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter, beating until a smooth dough forms. Stir in the hazelnuts until evenly distributed. Divide the dough in half in the bowl. With lightly floured hands, form the dough into two 25x4cm rectangular logs. Place the logs on an ungreased baking sheet, at least 4cm apart. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the logs are set and golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 15 minutes. Using a serrated knife and a sawing motion, carefully cut the logs into 1cm diagonal slices. Discard the end pieces. Arrange the slices, cut sides down and close together, on 2 baking sheets. Bake for 8-9 minutes, or until lightly browned. Turn them over and continue baking until lightly browned on the other side, about nine minutes longer. Cool completely on baking sheets. Hazelnut Cookies 125g margarine 1/2 cup brown sugar 2 tablespoons treacle 1 egg 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1 1/2 cups self raising flour 1 cup chopped hazelnuts Cream margarine and sugar, beat in the treacle, egg and vanilla. Stir in the flour and hazelnuts, mixing thoroughly. Shape into balls and flatten onto a greased oven tray. Bake at 130C for 15-20 minutes. Variations: Sprinkle chopped chocolate over each cookie while still hot from the oven. Add 1 tablespoon instant coffee to the margarine mixture. Omit 1/2 cup flour and add 1 cup rolled oats.

Thank you all! My cookies are Swedish, too, colleenoz! All the cookies I make for Christmas are either Swedish or Danish, handed down from my Danish grandmother (who married a Swede). Your recipe is probably just like mine. With equal amounts finely ground nuts and flour, they break apart in your mouth in a flurry of tender texture and flavor. For the first time ever, we had problems with the recipe, which is why they didn’t all get baked. We didn’t know whether to blame the new oven (which was a problem for pretty much everything) or a difference in the dough. I think maybe both. Instead of the normal 20 minutes at 350 to get slightly brown on the bottom, they took 40 minutes plus. Then, they shattered when trying to roll them in powdered sugar. I’m not good at analyzing a problem and knowing how to fix it. We used to buy the pecans pre-ground. The nut store we bought them at went out of business. We bought a 3 lb bag of whole pecans and ground them ourselves in the food processor. Last year went fine. This year the dough seemed too moist. We had a problem even forming the balls, then they shattered as I wrote above. I was in the process of adding more flour to compensate, and doing test bakes, when I decided it was time to pull the plug and stop baking. I think the pecans must have been very fresh, and were too moist. We ground them a couple of days ahead and I should have turned them and let them dry a bit, instead of covering the bowl. I noticed the ground pecans were moist, but I didn’t do anything with the knowledge. The pecan meal I used to buy pre-ground was much drier. Either that or leave out the 3 T of water the recipe calls for.