Espresso Wafers
A dark, slightly bitter coffee-flavored crisp wafer, best enjoyed with bittersweet chocolate frosting.
Ingredients
all-purpose white flour
12/3 cups
vanilla extract
11/4 teaspoons
unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
31/2 tablespoons
very finely ground espresso beans
Scant 2 tablespoons
salt
1/4 teaspoon
unsalted butter (slightly softened)
3/4 cup (11/2 sticks)
sugar
1/2 cup
powdered sugar
1/3 cup
instant espresso powder or granules (dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water)
1 tablespoon plus 21/2 teaspoons
BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE ICING: powdered sugar
1 cup
BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE ICING: unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 tablespoons
Instructions
1
Mixing Dough
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat together the butter, sugar, powdered sugar, espresso mixture, and vanilla until well blended. Beat in the ground espresso beans. Beat or stir in the flour mixture until evenly incorporated.
2
Chilling Dough
Divide the dough in half. Place each portion between large sheets of wax paper. Roll out the portions ⁄/• inch thick; check the underside of the dough and smooth out any wrinkles that form. Stack the rolled portions (paper still attached) on a baking sheet. Refrigerate for about 45 minutes or until cold and firm, or freeze for about 20 minutes to speed chilling.
3
Preheat Oven
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease several baking sheets or coat with nonstick spray.
4
Cutting Cookies
Working with one portion at a time, gently peel away, then pat one sheet of wax paper back into place. Flip the dough over, then peel off and discard the second sheet. Using a 2⁄/¢-to-2⁄/™-inch round or oval cutter, cut out the cookies. (If at any point the dough softens too much to handle easily, transfer the paper and cookies to a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm again.) Using a spatula, carefully transfer the cookies to the baking sheets, spacing about 1⁄/™ inches apart. Reroll any dough scraps. Continue cutting out the cookies until all the dough is used.
5
Baking
Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, in the upper third of the oven for 5 to 8 minutes, or until just beginning to firm up when pressed in the centers; be careful not to burn. Reverse the sheet from front to back halfway through baking to ensure even browning. Transfer the sheet to a wire rack and let stand until the cookies firm up slightly, about 2 minutes. Using a spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks set over sheets of wax paper. Let stand until completely cooled.
6
Making the Icing
Sift the powdered sugar and cocoa together into a small, deep bowl. Stir in 1⁄/™ tablespoons hot water, or enough to make a smooth, slightly runny icing. Using a piping cone or small pastry bag fitted with a fine writing tip, decoratively drizzle fine lines of icing back and forth over the cookies. (Alternatively, put the icing in a small, sturdy plastic bag, squeezing the icing into one corner and twisting the top of the bag closed. Snip the point of the corner to produce a small hole. Then drizzle fine lines of icing back and forth across the cookies.) Let the cookies stand until the icing sets, about 1 hour.
