RECIPE: Lemon Kiss Cookies - 375 F oven, need 3 hours+

  1.5 cups butter or margarine, softened to room temperature
  3/4 cup granulated sugar
  1 TABLESPOON lemon extract
  2.75 cups all-purpose or unbleached flour.  (Do not use self-
rising flour.)
  1.5 cups finely chopped almonds
  1 package (14 oz) Hersheys kisses
  Confectioners' sugar
  1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  1 TABLESPOON shortening

  These delicate lemon-flavor cookies are special enough for
entertaining.

  Procedure: In large bowl, beat butter, sugar and lemon extract
until light and fluffy.  Add flour and chopped almonds, beating at
low speed until well blended.  Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour
for easier handling.
  Shape a scant tablespoonful of dough around each candy kiss,
covering kiss completely.  Roll in palm of hands to form a ball.
Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in a 375-degree
oven for 8 to 12 minutes or until set and bottom edges are light
golden brown.  Remove from oven and let cool 1 minute on sheet
before removing to wire rack to cool.  When completely cool, lightly
dust with confectioners' sugar.
  In small saucepan, melt chocolate chips and shortening over low
heat, stirring until smooth.  Drizzle each cookie with some of a the
chocolate.
  Yield: Makes about 6 dozen.
  [Orange County Register, date unknown]

  [1991. Six dozen - don't you believe it!  Quantity will vary dramatically
depending on how careful you measure out the dough, so don't count
your cookies before they're hatched.  We made these for our
Christmas cookie plates, and they were the hit of the bunch.
They're a bit of work, but boy are they worth it!  Even Debbie (my
wife), who "doesn't like nuts in food" was delighted with them and
the almond/lemon cookie shell.]

  [August 2010. On our oven -- three ovens later, and with a different wife --
it looks like 12 minutes is just about right. With careful handling I got
over 100 out of my batch.]

[May 2017. I made a double batch, and used an iced teaspoon for scooping 
out the dough. 9 minutes was perfect. I didn't have lemon extract so I 
used the same measurement of zest.  I went through an entire 40-oz. bag 
of Hershey's Kisses, and still had dough left over. Yield was 251 for 
the double batch. Take my advice: don't attempt a double batch by 
yourself!]

Hazel Boston-Baden, P.O. Box 17522, Anaheim CA 92817.
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