there’s a weird duality to maintain when you’re asian american (or, let’s be real, the mixture of any cultures). it’s serving no mai fan alongside the jello salad and turkey at thanksgiving. it’s knowing what soondubu is, and harboring a soft spot for peanut butter. so in that same vein, i’m bringing you two homemade food gift ideas perfect for giving to co-workers and friends and family and whoever else you deem worthy of delicious food this multi-cultural holiday season. part one: cherry almond croquant.
a croquant is a french cookie, and this cherry almond croquant is studded with plenty of crunchy almonds and dried cherries. it’s super crunchy so i think of it almost as a candy instead of a cookie. the almonds give off an almond extract/marzipan-esque flavor, even though neither of them are in here. and so long as your honey isn’t a pain in the butt (ie it’s not crystallized and you’re not lazy enough to melt it in the microwave), this recipe is a breeze.
this post is shorter and later than usual because someone had the really great luck of getting sick the sunday of finals week!! she napped for 90% of her day and tried to study in her delirious state for the other 10%. and ofc didn’t have her post done. sigh.
1 year ago: Seared Mushroom Salad, Snickerdoodles
2 years ago: Candied Espresso Walnuts, Coffee Almond Shortbread Cookies
3 years ago: Eggplant Parm, Zha Jiang Mian
4 years ago: On Toast, Applesauce Granola
This cherry almond croquant is an easy to make homemade holiday gift that doubles deliciously as dessert.
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg white
- 2 T honey
- 1 T all-purpose flour
- 2 cups raw almonds skin on is fine, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup dried cherries roughly chopped
-
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, egg, honey and flour. Whisk until combined and frothy. Add the nuts and cherries. Stir (switch to a spatula or a spoon, unless you want to struggle around with a whisk) until they are coated. Pour into a lined and well greased 9” round cake pan. Bake at 350F until golden, about 30 minutes. Cool in pan for at least 1 hour before cutting (I recommend using a pretty hefty, big knife) and serving.
From Carrie Vasios Mullens via Serious Eats.
I think raw almonds taste like cardboard, so I like using dry roasted ones here (and they don't get burnt or too toasty or anything).
Dried cranberries work in place of the dried cherries, or any dried fruit that's a bit tart.
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You’ve hit all of my favorites, here, Heather! I totally love anything with cherries of any sort and almonds (particularly roasted – ok and salted) are fantastic in anything. I will be trying this simple recipe, sooner rather than later. Hope you’re feeling better, finals is the worst time to be sick!
YES to roasted almonds! i think that raw ones taste like cardboard lol.
Oooh, almonds and cherries together! Looks tasty! Have bookmarked it to try 🙂 Get well soon Heather!
i second that almond/cherry ooohing, and it shows on the blog haha (this + almond cherry bostock in one month!).
very cool. Love this recipe! great photos.
thanks, mimi! (:
Toasted almonds and dried cherries are so amazing together! And so good in this french cookie! Crunchy with sweetness from those cherries! Yummy 🙂
yes, they’re so good together! thanks deepika (:
I didn’t know this recipe but it’s surprizingly appetizing, I’m sure it’s so sweet and crunchy 🙂 I love it
there’s new things that i don’t know in my culture’s cuisine either, and it’s so exciting when i find out about them! there’s a roasted whole chicken stuffed with sticky rice, and it’s soooooo good. someday, i’ll try it :3
What a great combination and I love crunchy almonds any time!
thanks kankana!
Hope you are feeling better girl! I’m loving how easy this croquant is and almonds and cherries together are da flavor bomb. I’ll seriously eat them in anything. YUM!!!!!
p.s. I adore raw almonds and eat them all the time, but now that you’ve mentioned it, they kinda do taste like cardboard… 😉
thankfully i was feeling a lot better within 48 hours (: (and i passed everything yayay!!!). hahah raw almonds are easy (and supposedly healthier), so i don’t blame you.
Crunchy almonds and dried cherries. What’s not to love!? Hope you are feeling better my friend!!
almonds and cherries are always a good idea (:
This sounds intriguing Heather! I have never heard of croquant, but I love almonds and dried cherries, so I know I have to love it!! It almost sounds like an almond brittle and the cherries would be chewy in it, which sounds amazing! I’ll have to give it a try! 🙂
oooh yes if you’re into almond brittle you’re definitely gonna like croquant.
this reminds me of a cherry almond chocolate bar i used to love and can no longer find! so yummy and cool gif! x
ahhh hope you can find that chocolate bar again someday! i offhandedly mentioned these korean crackers i used to love as a kid that were shaped like sea animals and flavored with seaweed to a friend, and she tracked them down for me as a surprise. it was a couple of days of really happy snacking (:
Oh this is definetly gonna be something I like, those flavours sound fab.
thanks, emma!! (:
I love the flavors of almonds and cherries, so tasty and festive. Being a African American with Southern Roots I totally understand the weird duality lol. I hope you feel better and I hope you Ace your finals. 🙂
oooh that’s cool! tbh i love the mixture of cultures- there’s so many tasty food mashups to be had (;
I’ve never had a croquant before but it sounds seriously delicious! I hope you feel better and you’re going to slay all your finals I’m sure.
thanks meg!!! didn’t quite slay my finals (i tried to bring a pillow into one of my finals but that was a no go sigh), but i passed and sometimes that’s just going to have to be good enough (;
Croquant is new to me. But, sounds super simple and I love the almond and cherries here – a classic combo. I’m glad you managed to post in spite of the sickness and finals. Sending some good vibes your way.
it seems like croquant is new to a lot of people! (and let’s be real, i hadn’t heard of it until i made this recipe haha).
Looks delicious Heather! Loving that gif you have too 😀 Really sorry to hear you got sick right during finals – that sounds absolutely terrible, and I sympathize with you. I really hope you get better soon, and that your exams go well! Sending lots of virtual hugs your way <3
that gif was fun to make! i really want to make one with a ton of different stills, but that’s a lot more work than just 3 pics like this one (;
This sounds delicious! I was looking for a new treat to take as a gift this holiday and this is perfect!
this is a such an easy holiday gift! you can make a really big batch + it’s pretty cheap (:
This looks like an interesting recipe considering how you’re putting two cultures into one dish! Totally love that idea. Considering how this is easy to make, I’d be down to give this a try! Hope you’re feeling well and did well in your finals!
exquisitely.me
thanks, nancy! (:
Hey Heather!
Hope you’re feeling better now (I’m also in recovering state!)
This sounds very tasty, I’ll certainly give it a try!
thanks! i got better… and then i came down with a cold again last week. someday i’ll be feeling better!!
Honestly, those are the best types of food gatherings – it’s never a dull moment for your taste buds and almost always ends in a uncomfortable food coma from shoveling all the foods into your mouth because you can. haha! 🙂 Hope your finals went well! Oh and I’ve been meaning to not over indulge for the new year but I think this needs to be eaten – I just have to figure out how to get my solid honey out of the bottle -_- haha
ugh yes getting solid honey out of the bottle is such a pain. there’s the trick of dunking the bottle in a big bowl of warm water until the honey softens and flows. it sort of works, but my bottle of honey has a paper-y label so then that’s flaking off the bottle and into the water and it feels like a lot of work lol.