Saturday evening Jon baked up a storm while I was out with the girls. What a sweetheart! And these cookies are excellent! Light, crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, delightful!

• 1 cup (1/2 lb.) butter at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tablespon almond extract
• 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
• About 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups sliced almonds

In a large bowl, with a mixer on medium speed, beat 1 cup butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg yolk, almond extract, and orange peel and beat until well blended.

In another bowl, mix 2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to butter mixture; stir to mix, then beat until well blended. Gather dough into a ball, divide in half, and flatten each portion into a disk; wrap each tightly in plastic wrap and freeze until firm enough to roll without sticking, about 30 minutes.

Unwrap dough. Use a spoon to scoop dough and form one inch balls with your hands. Roll balls in sugar and then dip the top half in chopped almond slivers. Place about 2 inches apart on buttered 12- by 15-inch baking sheets and flattened with the bottom of a glass.

Bake cookies in a 325º regular or convection oven until lightly browned, about 15 minutes; if baking two sheets at once in one oven, switch their positions halfway through cooking. Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then use a wide spatula to transfer to racks to cool completely.