Florentine Cookie Bars

Submitted by Scissors from Kansas

"Decorative cookies for the holiday!!"

 

• Ready In: 1hr 20mins
• Ingredients: 12
• Yields: 96 cookie
• Serves: 96

ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2⁄3 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• Filling

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 1⁄4 cups heavy whipping cream
• 3⁄4 cup butter, cubed
• 2⁄3 cup honey
• 4 cups sliced almonds
• 1 1⁄2 cups candied red cherries or 1 1/2 cups green glazed cherries
• 3⁄4 cup dried currant

• Garnish

• 1 1⁄4 lbs white candy coating

directions

1. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Gradually add flour and mix well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until easy to handle.
2. Roll dough into an ungreased 15-in.x10 in.x1 inches baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 7-9 minutes or until lightly browned.
3. Meanwhile, in a large heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, cream, butter, and honey. Cook, stirring occasionally, until a candy thermometer reads 246 degrees( firm-ball stage). Remove from the heat; stir in the almonds, cherries and currants. Spread evenly into crust.
4. Bake for 18-22 minutes or just until filling is set. Cool completely on a wire rack. Refrigerate overnight.
5. Remove florentine from pan. With a sharp knife, trim edges of crust; discard the trim.Cut lengthwise into six strips;cut each strip into 16 triangles.
6. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt candy coating; stir until smooth. Dip the short side of each triangle into candy coating; place on wax paper. Drizzle with additional candy coating. Let stand until set. Cover and store in the refrigerator.

Reviews

[MoInnkeeper]

A very exclusive club in town served these and they were wonderful. I have tried many other recipes trying to find a match and they were not even in the ball park. This recipe was a hit. The cookie dough on the bottom is soft and does not crumble as easy as others. I used cherry flavored Craisins instead of the candied cherries (simply because I always have them on hand). Make sure you refrigerate overnight. Next day, I turned the pan over onto a cutting board and pressed until it broke loose from the edges. Give it some time to warm up before cutting into bars. I run an Inn and serve these to our guests. The nuts, fruit and sweet buttery caramel taste is amazing.