Note to self: Never bake cookies before breakfast, especially if you are starving.

Yesterday, faced with the prospect of no milk accompaniment for cornflakes, I decided to hold out until lunch. I wanted to try out a recipe for almond cookies and told myself I would only eat 1 or 2, then fix myself a sensible lunch. However, hunger and gluttony got the best of me, and I ended up wolfing down eight.

You live, you learn.

My father used to own a Cantonese bakery and he would make these enormous, 5-inch wide crisp almond cookies with an egg-y sheen. I wanted more manageable-sized cookies, so I tried a recipe out of Chinatown: Sweet Sour Spicy Salty, a book I borrowed from the school I teach at. A recipe from the book I tried before was a dud, but fortunately this one turned out fine, giving me crisp and buttery textured cookies.

The only alteration I made was adding a half cup of ground almonds for a more nutty flavor. Although next time methinks I should replace the all-purpose flour with almond flour from Carrefour's enormous flour selection. (Or cashew flour, or even goji flour. Ah, Carrefour. What unusual flour don't you have?)

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Other cookie recipes to try:

Goji Oatmeal-Almond Cookies
Orange-Almond Lace Cookies
Green Tea Cookies

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Chinese Almond Cookies
Adapted from Chinatown by Ross Dobson

8 ounces unsalted butter, softened
1 cup caster sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup unsalted whole almonds, ground almonds
40 or so unsalted whole almonds

Cream the butter and sugar until pale and smooth. Beat in the egg, then fold in flour, baking powder, and ground almonds. Form the dough into a ball, then divide into four sections. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll each into a log about 4 inches long. Wrap each log firmly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 1 hour, until firm enough to slice.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius.)

Slice 1/2-inch (1 cm) thick rounds from the logs and arrange on baking sheet. Firmly press an almonds into the center of each. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a wire rack before serving. These will keep in an air-tight container for 3 to 4 days.