The Original

INGREDIENTS

• 6 petits-beurre (cookies by Lu)
• 1 lemon
• Powdered sugar
• Green almond paste
• White almond paste

PROCEDURE

Mix 1 tablespoon lemon juice with 6 tablespoon powdered sugar.  Spread a little of the white creamy mixture on each cookie with the back of a spoon.  With a rolling pin dusted in powdered sugar, roll out the green almond paste and cut 12 leaves and 6 stems with a knife.  Make little balls with the white almond paste.  Put the leaves on the cookies.  Be careful to plan your moves well, as it you don’t want to skid and damage the icing.  Place the white balls, pressing down so they stick, and let dry at least 1 hour.

My American Version

INGREDIENTS

• 6 Petit Beurre cookies
• 6 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 30 grams almond paste (24 g green, 6 for balls)
• Food coloring

PROCEDURE

I found it hard to get green almond paste.  Lay out the Petit Beurres on a large cutting board.  Mix the powdered sugar with the lemon juice in a small bowl, and set aside.  Add 1 to 2 drops green food coloring to 24 grams of almond paste, and use your fingers to work the dye into the paste.  Then, choose a color for the flowers.  For pink, add 1 drop of red to the remaining 6 grams of almonds paste.  For purple, 1 drop red and 1 drop blue.  For yellow, 1 drop yellow.  And work the dye in the same way as with the green.

Cover the green paste with a little bit of plastic wrap, and roll it out.  Use a paring knife to cut stems and leaves freehand from the paste.  For the flowers, pull off little bits of pink or purple or yellow paste, and roll it to form balls between your hands.

Use the back of a teaspoon to spread glaze onto Petits Beurres.  Then, arrange a stem and 2 leaves on the wet glaze, and finally three blossoms.  Allow to sit and dry on a rack for 1 hour.

An Easy Alternative

Just spread the lemon glaze on the Petits Beurres, and serve them with a pot of Earl Grey tea.  The lemon in the glaze counteracts the sweet butteriness of the cookings, and compliments the bergamot in the tea.  Perfect!