Invincible Star Cookies

It's up to you.

12 detailed steps, from preparation to service.

1. Prepare clean utensils and weigh whites

   Prepare a bowl and whisks the batter perfectly clean and dry, without trace of butter. Separate the whites from the two eggs one by one in a small bowl, then weigh 60 g of whites and pour them into the bowl; keep the yolks for another recipe. Weigh 160 g of icing sugar for meringue and 20 g to spread the dough. Also prepare 250 g of ground almonds, 6 g of cinnamon and 10 ml of lemon juice.

2. Set up a meringue farm

   Whisk 60 g of whites at medium speed until you get a white foam with small bubbles. Pour the 160 g of icing sugar into four additions, continuing to beat between each addition. Slightly increases the speed and frets for a few more minutes, until the mixture is thick and shiny. When you lift the beaters, the meringue must form a point that stands; it must no longer flow like a liquid.

3. Reserve the icing before making the dough

   Take three tablespoons of meringue and put them in a small bowl. Cover this bowl and store it in the refrigerator: this portion will be used to cover the stars before cooking. Do not mix all the meringue with almonds, otherwise there will be no white top. Then scrape the whisks to put the remaining meringue back into the large bowl.

4. Add almonds, cinnamon and lemon

   Pour 250 g of ground almonds and 6 g of cinnamon into the meringue of the salad bowl. Add 10 ml of lemon juice. Mix with a spatula by picking up the bottom and bringing the dough over, until there is no more dry powder. The dough will be thick and sticky: do not add flour to dry it.

5. Cool the dough before spreading it

   Gather the dough into a thick disc, cover it and place it in the refrigerator for 45 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare a baking tray, baking paper, a roll and a 5 cm star cookie cutter. The cold dough should remain flexible, but peel off more easily from the paper. If it still sticks a lot, leave it for another 10 minutes in the refrigerator rather than loading it with sugar.

6. Spread to 8 mm and cut out the stars

   Turn the oven on at 150 °C in conventional oven setting (no fan) and places an oven rack in the bottom third. Saupowder lightly a sheet of baking paper with part of the 20 g of icing sugar provided, lay the dough on it, then add a second sheet. Roll spread on a uniform thickness of 8 mm. Take off the top paper, lightly dry ingredients the cookie cutter with the remaining sugar and cuts 24 stars of 5 cm; gathers the offcuts and re-spread them. Any dough remaining after the 24 stars is cooked in small separate cookies.

7. Ice with reserved meringue

   Transfer the stars to the chemised plate with a spatula and leave 2 cm between them. Take the small bowl of reserved meringue and gently stir it with a spoon. Spread this meringue between the 24 stars, then spread it in a thin layer with the back of a small spoon, pushing towards the tips. The top should be white, but the meringue should not flow in packages on the sides.

8. Cook keeping the top white

   Bake in the bottom third for 12 to 14 minutes. At 12 minutes, check the icing: it should be dry on the surface and remain white or very slightly creamy. The stars may still appear soft in the center; do not prolong cooking until they are hard. Take out the plate and let the cookies cool on it for about 45 minutes, without moving them as long as they are fragile.

9. Preparing chocolate from the eyes

   Chop the 30 g of dark chocolate with a knife and put them in a small, perfectly dry bowl. Pour 2 cm of water into a saucepan and simmer gently, then lower the heat. Place the bowl above: its bottom should not touch the water. Stir with a spatula until only a few small pieces remain. Remove the bowl from the heat and keep stirring so the residual heat melts them. Wipe the bottom of the bowl; no drop of water should fall into the chocolate. Let it cool so that it does not spread in stain on the icing. Prepare a small cornet or piping bag with a very fine opening; only the eyes should be drawn, without covering the white top.

10. Installing the stars to maintain orientation

    Lay the 24 totally cold stars on a clean sheet, with a tip facing upwards. Check the icing: it should be dry, and not sticky under a very light touch. Prepare a test of two small vertical lines on the paper to adjust the pressure of the cone. The eyes must remain thick and simple, in order to be achievable without precision equipment.

11. Draw two eyes in the center of each star

    Place a small cone of baking paper in a glass, point down, and half fill it with a spoon. Fold over the top to keep chocolate away from your hand, then cut a 2 to 3 mm opening at the tip. Pipe a test line on the paper: a continuous ribbon should flow when you squeeze gently. On each cookie, draw two vertical black lines of about 6 to 8 mm, spaced a few millimeters apart. Place the tip near the icing without scratching it, press slightly and then raise the hand by ceasing to press. Use the 30 g for these small patterns; any excess is allowed to harden on paper rather than adding other features to the face.

12. Dry your eyes before storing

    Leave the stars in a cool room for 20 to 30 minutes, without stacking them. Both eyes should be dry and no longer mark when lightly touching the chocolate. Gently peel the cookies by supporting their ends with a spatula. Store them in a box, with paper between the layers, so that the pattern remains intact.