Amerikaner Cake Like Cookies

For children (12 Pieces/2 baking sheets)

Preparation time: about 30 minutes, excluding cooling time
Baking time: about 20 minutes

For the baking sheet:
Baking parchment

For the mixture:

75 g/3 oz (3⁄8 cup) soft margarine or butter
100 g/31⁄2 oz (1⁄2 cup) sugar
2–3 drops vanilla essence in 1 tablespoon sugar
5 drops vanilla essence
1 pinch salt
2 medium eggs
250 g/9 oz (21⁄2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
3 level teaspoons baking powder
100 ml/31⁄2 fl oz (1⁄2 cup) milk

For the coating:
About 4 teaspoons milk

For the icing:

200 g/7 oz (11⁄3 cups) icing (confectioner’s) sugar
about 2 tablespoons lemon juice or water
150 g/5 oz plain chocolate
2 teaspoons cooking oil
chopped blanched almonds
chopped pistachios
sugar crystals
desiccated coconut

Per piece:P: 5 g, F: 12 g, C: 47 g, kJ: 1309, kcal: 312

1. Preheat the oven. Line the baking sheet with baking parchment and cut out a second piece of the same size.

2. To make the cake mixture, stir the softened margarine or butter with a hand mixer with whisk until it becomes smooth and homogeneous. Gradually add the sugar, vanilla sugar, vanilla essence and salt and stir until the mixture thickens. Add 1 egg at a time, whisking each one for about 1⁄2 minute at the highest setting.

3. Mix together the flour and baking powder, sift and add to the margarine or butter mixture in 2 stages, alternating with the milk, stirring briefly with the mixer at the medium setting. Spoon half the mixture in 6 small heaps, not too close to each other, onto the baking sheet, using 2 tablespoons. Then shape using a moistened knife. Put the first baking sheet in the oven.

Top/bottom heat: about 180 °C/350 °F (preheated),
Fan oven: about 160 °C/325 °F (preheated), Gas mark 4 (preheated),
Baking time: about 20 minutes.

4. After about 15 minutes in the oven, brush the top of the pastries with milk. With the rest of the dough make 6 more heaps on the second piece of baking parchment. Slide the baking parchment with the baked Amerikaners onto a rack and leave to cool. Then slide the second batch of Amerikaners onto the baking sheet and bake in the same way as the first batch.

5. For the icing, sift the icing sugar and mix with lemon juice or water to make a thick mixture. Coarsely chop the chocolate and melt together with the vegetable oil in a bain-marie over low heat. Coat the underside of the Amerikaners with the icing. Sprinkle with almonds, pistachio nuts, sugar crystals and desiccated coconut.

Thank you to read this post.