Chocolate Dipped Almond Cookies

Add the butter, almond paste, and sugar to the bowl of a standing mixer with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed, scraping down the bowl as needed, until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour and salt. Stop the mixer just when the dough comes together.

Remove the dough from the bowl of the mixer and wrap in plastic wrap. Form into a fat log and place in the refrigerator. Chill until firm; at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line 2 half sheet pans with parchment paper.

Once log of dough has chilled, remove from the refrigerator, unwrap, and cut in half. On a clean work surface, roll each half into a log about 2-inches in diameter. Slice each log into ¼-inch-thick medallions and arrange the cookies on the lined sheet pans, making sure to leave some space between each cookie. Transfer to the oven and bake until cookies are just barely golden around the edges, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.

While cookies cool, add the slivered almonds to a dry pan over medium heat. Toast, shaking the pan frequently, until lightly browned, about 5-6 minutes. Sprinkle almonds into a bowl, and set aside.

Add the two types of chopped chocolate into two separate small bowls and melt in 30 second intervals in the microwave, making sure to stir the chocolate at the end of every interval [should take about 1½ minutes per bowl in total]. Set aside.

To finish the cookies: once completely cool, dip each cookie halfway into the melted chocolate and shake off the excess. Place onto a parchment-lined sheet pan to cool. Repeat until all the cookies have been dipped, half in the bittersweet chocolate, and half in the white chocolate. While the chocolate is still wet, sprinkle the toasted almonds over the cookies, pressing them gently into the chocolate. Transfer the pan to the refrigerator and chill until chocolate is completely hardened. Cookies can be stored in a sealed container at room temperature or in the refrigerator.