Soetkoekies - Sweet Wine and Spice South African Cookies

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray two baking sheets with cooking spray. Sift the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt together and set aside.
• In a deep bowl, cream the butter and the dark-brown sugar together, mashing and beating them against the sides of the bowl until they are thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, then add the flour mixture 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. Beat in the wine and chopped almonds.
• With your hands, vigorously knead the dough in the bowl until it can be gathered into a somewhat firm, compact ball. If the dough then seems too soft, knead in up to 1/4 cup more flour, adding it a tablespoon or so at a time.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a rough circle about 1/4 inch thick. With a cookie cutter or the rim of a glass, cut it into 2-inch rounds. Arrange the rounds about 1 inch apart on the buttered baking sheets. Then gather the scraps of dough into a ball, roll it out into another circle, and cut out rounds as before.
• Press a blanched almond half lightly into the center of each Soetkoekie and brush the entire top surface of the cookie with the beaten egg white-and-water mixture.
• Bake the cookies in the middle of the oven for 15 minutes, or until they are crisp and firm to the tough. With a wide metal spatula, transfer the cookies to a rack to cool. The cookies will keep for up to two weeks in a tightly covered jar.