Elegant and delicious, these cookies are the perfect addition to your holiday spread. For a variation, try with raspberry preserves; you can show off the jewel-like filling by cutting the center out of half of the cookies. If giving these as a gift, be sure to pack them carefully with a layer of wax paper between each cookie.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

ACTIVE TIME: 1 hour

TOTAL TIME: 1 3/4 hours

EASE OF PREPARATION: Moderate

Cookies
3/4 cup whole almonds
1 1/4 cups white whole-wheat flour (see Note)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling & glaze
1/3 cup apricot preserves
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips or 3 1/4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon low-fat milk
1 1/2 teaspoons light corn syrup

1. To prepare cookies: Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat (see Tip).
2. Process almonds in a blender in 2 batches until finely ground. Transfer to a large bowl and add flour, 1/2 cup butter, sugar and salt. Knead the mixture with your hands until well blended. (The dough will be dry.) Gather the dough into a ball; divide it into 2 portions.
3. Working with one portion at a time, roll the dough between 2 sheets of parchment or wax paper until 1/8 inch thick. Cut out cookies using a 2-inch circular cookie cutter. Using a metal spatula, place them 1/2 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. (If you like, cut out the centers of half the cookies using a 1-inch cutter.) Gather the scraps, reroll and continue cutting out cookies until the dough is gone. Repeat with the second portion of dough.
4. Bake the cookies, one batch at a time, until puffed and beginning to color, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on the pans for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. To fill & glaze cookies: Spread preserves on half the cookies; top with the remaining cookies to make sandwiches.
6. Melt chocolate and 1 tablespoon butter in a double boiler over hot water. Remove from the heat; stir in milk and corn syrup until smooth. Line 2 baking sheets with wax paper. Dip each sandwich cookie halfway into the chocolate, then place on the wax paper. When all the cookies are dipped, refrigerate until the chocolate has set, 20 to 30 minutes.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per cookie: 125 calories; 7 g fat (4 g sat, 1 g mono); 11 mg cholesterol; 14 g carbohydrate; 2 g protein; 1 g fiber; 26 mg sodium; 19 mg potassium.

1 Carbohydrate Serving

TIP: Note: White whole-wheat flour, made from a special variety of white wheat, is light in color and flavor but has the same nutritional properties as regular whole-wheat flour.

MAKE AHEAD TIP: Prepare through Step 4 up to 2 days ahead.

This is an excellent cookie, just received the magazine and had to try it. I followed the recipe exactly, however, the dough was so crumbly I couldn't make it into two separate portions as directed. I ended up adding an egg to the dough, rolled it out and followed the rest of the recipe. They are truly delicious and really quite easy to make....Any thoughts for me on what I did or didn't do that didn't serve me. The only thing I can think of was that I didn't sift the King Arthur whole-wheat flour. They are lovely to look at as well.....

Anonymous, Cheney, KS

I also found the dough too dry to work with. Adding a few extra tablespoons of butter made a big difference. My co-workers loved them!

Anonymous, Chicago, IL

This is a terrible recipe to make. I actually came back and checked the website to see if there was an error in the magazine that had been corrected online. The dough is way too dry and crumbly, I can't even attempt to cut out the centers, the cookies would just fall apart. While the baked cookies taste OK, they crumble with the slightest touch. How did you ever get the cover photo? Magic? I'm irritated at the time and ingredients this recipe called for with little in return. Very disappointed with Eating Well on this one.

Anonymous, Fairfax, VT

I made these yesterday for a cookie swap and they look gorgeous--just like the picture! They taste yummy too. The dough is more like a shortbread dough than a cookie dough. I added orange zest, because that's how my Mom always made her shortbread. My dough was crumbly at first, but I think it's because I refrigerated it for a little bit. The more I worked it with my hands the better it stuck together. I used a donut cutter with a removable center to cut out the cookies. Will definitely add these to my repertoire!

P.W., Burlington, VT