Lace cookies

LACE COOKIES

Gourmet magazine JULY 1957

“An omelette is always a supper favorite,” the editors opined in July. “We prefer ours with lobster meat, but crab or shrimp may be substituted. A tart salad refreshes the palate [the salad they were referring to contained romaine, fresh pineapple, watercress, and mayonnaise], and a compote of fresh peaches served with lace cookies brings down the curtain.” Lace cookies were a great favorite in the 1950s; they are so dainty that they were considered especially appropriate for ladies who lunched.

This is just one of Gourmet’s Favorite Cookies: 1941-2008. Although we’ve retested the recipes, in the interest of authenticity we’ve left them unchanged: The instructions below are still exactly as they were originally printed.

3 tablespoons butter
1 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons flour
1 beaten egg
1 cup ground almonds
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Bake in a moderately hot oven (375° F.) for about 8 to 10 minutes

Cream 3 tablespoons butter with 1 cup brown sugar and beat in 4 tablespoons flour, 1 beaten egg, 1 cup ground almonds, 1/2 teaspoon almond extract, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Drop the dough by teaspoonfuls 3 inches apart on a buttered cooky sheet. Bake the cookies in a moderately hot oven (375° F.) for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until they are crisp. Remove the cookies from the tin immediately and cool them on a rack.