Sugar Beet Cookies

Ingredients:

Cookie

• 1 and 3/4 cups (227 g) premium flour, plus extra for working with the dough
• 2/3 cup (75 g) almond flour
• 1/4 cup multi-colored sprinkles
• 0.5 tsp baking powder
• 0.5 tsp coarse salt
• 110 g unsalted butter, softened
• 1/3 tbsp. (67 gr.) granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup (40 g) powdered sugar
• Zest of a quarter of a lemon
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract

Glaze

• 2 cups powdered sugar + more if needed
• 2 tablespoons corn syrup
• 0.5 tsp vanilla extract
• A little almond extract
• A pinch of coarse salt
• 4-6 tablespoons heavy cream
• White decorative sugar, for sprinkling
• Green food coloring, for icing
• Special equipment: beetroot-shaped cookie cutter; 2 pastry bags with 0.3cm round tips.

Preparation:

1. Cookie:
   
   In a medium bowl, combine the flour, almond meal, baking powder, baking powder, and salt and set aside. In a bowl with a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar, powdered sugar, and lemon zest until pale and fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Add the egg and mix well, then add the extracts and mix again.
2. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and knead until smooth. At this point, you can wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or up to 2 days, or you can begin rolling out the dough and cutting out the cookies immediately.
3. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats and set aside.
4. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of just under 1 cm, dusting with flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking to the work surface or rolling pin.
5. Using a beetroot cutter, cut out the cookies, then use a spatula to place them 2.5 cm (1 inch) apart on a lined baking sheet. Gather the dough scraps, re-roll, and cut out more shapes. Bake the cookies until they begin to brown, checking the larger cookies after 12 minutes and the smaller ones after 10 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then carefully transfer them to a wire rack and let cool completely.
6. Glaze:
   
   In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, corn syrup (if using), vanilla and almond extracts, salt, and 4 tablespoons heavy cream until smooth. The icing should be thick but flow off a spoon in a smooth ribbon. If it's too thick, add a little more heavy cream, and if it's too thin, add a few more tablespoons of powdered sugar until you reach the desired consistency.
7. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 0.3 cm round tip three-quarters full with icing and decorate the white parts of the beets. Sprinkle with white granulated sugar. Add a few drops of green food coloring to the remaining icing, then transfer to the pastry bag and pipe onto the leaves. Let the icing set and enjoy!
8. The cookies can be stored in a tightly sealed container at room temperature for several days, but you can also freeze them once the icing has dried to keep them fresh longer!