It's that time of the year when the ghouls come out to play and there's probably no better way to keep them in check than by serving up a batch of creepy witch finger-shaped treats, right? Right. Devised especially for your Halloween shindig this year, Brandi's delicious recipe for espresso-infused shortbread cookies is made all the more spooky and delicious by the addition of a slivered almond 'fingernail' at the end of a crooked finger! The cool thing with this recipe is that you can take it to the dough chilling phase and then have fun creating all manner of ghastly shapes -- ghosts, worms, headless horseman ... wherever your imagination takes you! And if you happen to have little goblins (AKA small children) hanging around, this recipe is perfect for them to have some fun with, too. Watch Brandi creep us out while crafting these shortbread cookies. This was seriously the most disturbing video we've ever shot, so ... enjoy?
Recipe: Espresso Witch Fingers (Shortbread Cookies)
Ingredients
- 2 sticks of unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 3/4 teaspoon finely ground coffee
- 2 1/4 cup flour
- slivered almonds
Directions
- Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
- Add vanilla and coffee, then combine until well mixed.
- Sift the flour and salt together to incorporate a little bit of air, then add to the butter mixture and beat until well combined.
- Chill the dough until firm, about 2 hours.
- Once chilled, preheat the oven to 325F.
- It's time to make the fingers! Shape the dough into inch-wide rolls and 4 - 5 inch long pieces.
- Place one slivered almond on the end (this is the witch's fingernail!) and, using the tines of a fork, make a light impression mid-way down the roll (this is the witch's knuckle!).
- Place on a parchment-covered cookie sheet and bake 15 - 20 minutes, or until golden.
- Scare the heck out of everyone by serving them up next to a cup of coffee!