Chocolate-Dipped Bear Paws

Ingredients 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pans 3/4 cup sugar 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt 4 ounces toasted almonds, finely ground 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (about 1 1/3 cups)

Instructions 1. In a medium bowl, beat butter with sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add flour, spices, salt, and almonds and beat well on low speed until dough starts to come together, about 1 minute. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush 2 madeleine pans with softened butter. Press 2 packed tablespoons of dough into each mold (dough should be level with top of mold). 2. Bake until edges are brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes in pans on a wire rack. Turn pans upside down over rack and tap to release cookies from mold. Let cool completely on rack. 3. Melt chocolate in a metal bowl set over (not in) a pan of simmering water, or in a double boiler. Dip each cookie on the diagonal into chocolate, then place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate until chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.

Description Madeleines made even better with chocolate Notes To bake these cookies in one batch, you will need two madeleine pans. You can also bake them in two batches, cooling and buttering the pan between uses. Dipped cookies can be stored in the refrigerator up to three days; undipped cookies can be stored at room temperature up to one week.

Source Martha Stewart Living