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Parve
Easy
12 Servings
Allergens 
1 Hour
Diets
Mandelbrot, literally translated as “almond bread,” also known as mandel bread, is a sweet, almond-flavored cookie. My family would eat mandelbrot all the time. This recipe was not reserved for holidays or special occasions. I would bake them as often as possible because everyone enjoyed them. Even our family in Israel learned to love them when they would visit—and I have taken a few batches with me on trips there. I used to make these with a special kind of bitter almond—now unavailable. So now I use a regular almond, which is still good—but the bitter almond added an exceptional taste.
Yields: about 30 cookies
3 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, such as Glicks, plus more for kneading
2 teaspoons Haddar Baking Powder
1/2 cup slivered almonds
3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon Almond Extract
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets or cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, mix the flour and baking powder together. Stir in the almonds and set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the eggs until thick and very light. With the mixer continuing to beat, gradually add the sugar. When well combined, slowly pour in the oil while beating. When well combined, add the vanilla and almond extracts. With the mixer on low speed, incorporate the dry ingredients, about a third at a time, mixing well.
Knead the dough on a floured board for 10 to 12 turns, then divide the dough into three or four pieces. Roll each piece into strips about three inches wide, one inch thick, and 10 inches long (or a length that will comfortably fit your pan).
Place each piece on the prepared pan and bake for 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove immediately to a cutting board. While still warm, carefully cut into 1/2-inch slices. Lay the slices on their sides on the baking sheet and return to the oven to brown delicately, five to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
Recipe excerpted from “Honey Cake and Latkes: Recipes from the Old World by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Survivors.”
Photography by Ellen Silverman
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