Healthy, Melt-In-Your-Mouth Honey and Almond Butter Cookies

These cookies are fun to make and each one contains just five grams of fat and 94 calories. Honey is the only sweetener called for and ground almonds replace most of the butter that similar cookies contain. The small amount of butter used is combined with honey to provide a rich flavor that is low in saturated fat. Cookies can be made ahead and stored in a single layer within an airtight container for two days.

Ingredients:

• 1 ¼ cups whole-wheat pastry flour
• 1 cup whole almonds, toasted
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
• 3 tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted (for garnish)
• 2/3 cup plus ¼ cup pure manuka honey, divided
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon salt

Step 1: Process the whole almonds in a food processor until they are finely ground, yielding approximately 1 ¼ cups. Transfer ground almonds to a large bowl and add the salt, baking powder, all-purpose flour, and whole-wheat flour. Stir until the ingredients are just combined.

Step 2: With an electric mixer, beat canola oil, 3 tablespoons butter, and 2/3 cup manuka honey on medium speed in a separate mixing bowl. Add vanilla and egg and beat until ingredients are blended.

Step 3: Add the wet ingredients from Step 2 to the dry ingredients in Step 1 and stir to combine. Refrigerate this dough for 1 hour.

Step 4: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Use cooking spray to coat the tops of 2 baking sheets or line the sheets with nonstick baking mats or parchment paper.

Step 5: Roll tablespoons of dough to form 1-inch balls. Place dough approximately 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Press the tip of the index finger into the center of the dough to create an indentation. Bake the cookies in batches until they are set and their bottoms have just become golden, approximately 13 to 15 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks and allow them to cool for 30 minutes.

Step 6: Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and ¼ cup honey in a small bowl until the substance is creamy. Fill each cookie with ¼ teaspoon of the mixture and, if desired, top each cookie with 2 sliced almonds.