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Almond Shortbread Cookies

"These simple, but heavenly, almond butter cookies are traditional Puerto Rican Christmas cookies -- they are as common and popular as chocolate chip cookies are in the States. They make wonderful Christmas gifts that everyone will enjoy!"

By allrecipes · From Open Recipes · 8 ingredients
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Almond Shortbread Cookies

Why it works: Nutmeg and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,115 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓

Almond Shortbread Cookies

3 -1/2 dozen cookies
Prep25 min
Cook20 min

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

844Calories
15 gProtein
28 gFat
132 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Vegetable1 tbsp (14g)120
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Cherry1 cup (138g)87
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Nutmeg1 tsp ground (2.2g)12
Vanilla1 tsp extract (4ml)12
Almond1 almond (1.2g)7

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By allrecipes. Recipe from Open Recipes.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Nutmeg + almondtop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,115 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  2. Almond + vanillatop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,961 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  3. Flour + almondtop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together8,673 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  4. Flour + nutmegtop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together18,623 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  5. Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together35,032 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the nutmeg

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, butter, sugar, almond, vanilla):

  1. Cinnamonfits better
  2. Nutmegthe original
  3. Capersfits less well
  4. Clovefits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against flour, butter, sugar, almond, vanilla. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.