Zimtsterne (German Cinnamon Star Cookies)

Method

1. 1Whip the meringue. Put the egg whites and the salt into a clean, grease-free bowl and beat to stiff peaks. Sift the powdered sugar and add it a spoonful at a time with the mixer running, then add the lemon juice. Keep beating for 5 to 7 minutes, until the meringue is thick, glossy and stands in a firm peak when you lift the whisk. The lemon juice steadies the foam and helps the glaze stay white.
2. 2Set the glaze aside first. Take 3 heaped tablespoons of the meringue, put them in a small bowl and cover it tightly so no crust forms. This is the glaze. It is easy to forget, and once the almonds are in there is no way back.
3. 3Make the dough. Fold the 350 g of ground almonds and the cinnamon into the remaining meringue with a spatula until you have an even, sticky mass. It should be soft but hold its shape when you press it; if it flows, work in some of the extra 50 g of almonds. Wrap the dough and chill it for 45 minutes. Cold dough sticks far less.
4. 4Heat the oven to 140°C top and bottom heat (120°C fan) and line two trays with baking paper. Roll the dough out between two sheets of baking paper, dusted with a little of the remaining almonds, to a thickness of 8 to 10 mm. That is thicker than it feels right: thin stars dry out and bake hard.
5. 5Cut the stars. Dip a 5 cm star cutter into a glass of cold water before every cut so the dough lets go cleanly, and set the stars on the trays 1 cm apart; they do not spread. Press the scraps together, roll out again and keep cutting until the dough is used up.
6. 6Glaze. Stir the reserved meringue; if it has stiffened, loosen it with a few drops of water until it spreads but does not run. Put half a teaspoon on each star and push it out to the very tips with a small knife or the back of the spoon, about 2 mm thick.
7. 7Bake one tray at a time on the lower third rack for 20 to 25 minutes. The glaze must stay white and the stars should lift off the paper with a dry underside that has barely coloured. They will still feel soft: they firm up as they cool. Leave them on the tray until cold, then store in a tin, with a slice of apple if you like them soft.