Bottom Pastry Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons water

Choux Pastry Topping:
½ cup butter
1 cup water
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs

Vanilla Icing:
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons butter, softened
½ teaspoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon almond extract (optional)
1 to 2 tablespoons warm water or milk
½ cup sliced almonds, toasted

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Bottom Pastry Layer:
Place 1 cup flour in a medium bowl and use a pastry blender to cut in ½ cup softened butter (or pull 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite direction), until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons water over mixture and toss with a fork until well combined.

Gather the pastry into a ball and divide in half. On an ungreased baking sheet, use your hands to pat each half into a 12×3-inch rectangle, about 3 inches apart.

Choux Pastry Topping:
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine ½ cup butter with 1 cup water and bring to a roiling boil; remove from heat and use a wooden spoon to quickly stir in almond extract and 1 cup flour. Stir vigorously over low heat for about 1 minute, or until mixture forms a ball; remove from heat. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat by hand until smooth. Spread half of the topping over each pastry rectangle.

Bake for one hour or until topping is crisp and golden brown; transfer puffs from pan to cooling rack and cool completely.

Vanilla Icing:
In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients except almonds until smooth and spreadable; adjust ingredients until desired consistency is achieved. Spread over top of each cooled pastry, and sprinkle generously with toasted almond slices.

Slice on the bias, serve and enjoy.