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Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour 2 (9 by 1 1/2-inch) round cake pans.
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Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda in a mixing bowl and stir well to mix.
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Sift the dry ingredients onto a piece of parchment or waxed paper and set aside.
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Beat the butter and sugar together in an electric mixer set at medium speed.
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Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating smooth after each addition.
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Lower mixer speed to low and beat in half the dry ingredients.
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Scrape bowl and beaters well.
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Add the sour cream and scrape again, then beat in the remainder of the dry ingredients.
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Scrape batter into prepared pans and bake cake 30 to 35 minutes, or until well risen and a toothpick or knife inserted into the center of the cake emerges clean.
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Cool in pans on a rack for 5 minutes, then turn out of pans.
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Turn cake over again so it stands right side up to finish cooling.
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Line 2 cookie sheets or jelly roll pans with parchment.
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For the cookie dough, in a mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer set at medium
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speed until soft and light.
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Beat in 1 cup sugar and continue beating until sugar is completely incorporated.
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Beat in yolks, one at a time, beating smooth between each addition, scraping bowl
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and beaters occasionally.
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Beat in ground almonds.
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Sift flour over butter and egg mixture and fold in with a rubber spatula, making sure flour is completely absorbed.
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Stretch a piece of
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plastic wrap on a plate or cookie sheet and scrape dough onto wrap.
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Cover with another piece
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of plastic wrap and press dough into a 10-inch square, about 1/2-inch thick.
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Chill dough until firm, about 2 hours.
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
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Divide dough in quarters and remove one quarter at a time from refrigerator to roll.
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Place dough on a lightly floured work surface and lightly flour dough.
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Pound dough gently with rolling pin to soften it and roll dough to an 8-inch square about 3 1/6-inch thick.
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Cut dough into rounds with a plain 1 3/4- to 2-inch cutter.
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Arrange rounds on pans, about 1-inch apart, as they are cut.
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Repeat with remaining pieces of dough, refrigerating scraps between each rolling.
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After all the dough has been rolled and cut, press scraps together and re-roll them to make more cookie bases.
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Count bases and make a 1/2-inch hole in half the bases, using a small pastry tube.
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Place pans of cookies in oven and immediately lower temperature to 325 degrees.
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Bake the cookies about 20 minutes, until they are pale golden and firm.
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Cool on pans on racks.
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To finish cookies, lightly dust the pierced cookie bases with confectioners' sugar.
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Arrange unpierced bases, upside down, on a clean pan.
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Bring jam to a simmer in a small saucepan over low heat and allow jam to reduce for a minute or two, until slightly thickened.
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Gently spoon about 1/4 teaspoon of jam on each unpierced base, spreading it to within 1/8 of an inch of the edge.
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Top with pierced cookies.
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Place remaining jam in a small plastic bag and force it into one corner.
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Snip a small hole in the corner and squeeze a drop of jam into each opening in tops of cookies.
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Allow jam to dry.
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To store, arrange cookies in layers with waxed or parchment paper between in an airtight container.
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Garnish each with a raspberry before serving, if desired.
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Line 2 cookie sheets or jelly roll pans with parchment.
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For the dough, combine all the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to mix.
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Cut butter into 12 pieces and add; pulse to mix in finely.
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Add eggs and pulse to form a ball.
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Form the dough into a rectangle and wrap in plastic.
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Refrigerate until needed, up to 2 days.
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For the filling, rinse, halve and pit the apricots.
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Sprinkle the cut edge of each with a little sugar.
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When ready to form the pastries, preheat oven to 350 degrees and set racks in upper and lower thirds.
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Divide dough in half and roll each half to a 8 by14-inch rectangle.
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Cut each into 4-inch squares, reserving the left-over pieces of dough.
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Place the squares of dough on the baking pans and center an apricot, cut side down on each.
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Make a cut in the corner of each square of dough, through the corner and up to the apricot.
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Fold over every other slashed corner of dough to meet in the center over the apricot.
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Egg wash the top of each pastry and cut a 1 1/2-inch disk from the leftover dough to top each pastry.
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Egg wash the disks on the pastries.
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Bake the pastries about 20 to 25 minutes, turning them back to front and switching pan positions several times so that they bake evenly.
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Cool on the pans on racks.
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To finish the pastries, bring jam and rum to a boil in a saucepan and strain into another pan.
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Bring to a boil and simmer about 5 minutes, until no longer watery.
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Paint the top of each cooled pastry with the glaze and sprinkle with the almonds.
