Amaretti Cookies

Ingredients

• 3 egg whites
• 180 g caster sugar (superfine sugar)
• 250 g almond meal (almond flour; can substitute with ground hazelnut or pistachio)
• 1 tsp vanilla paste
• 1 mandarin zest (zest of 1-2 mandarins or your favorite citrus)
• 1 tbsp mandarin juice (can substitute with limoncello or amaretto)
• walnut halves (or pieces, for topping)
• icing sugar (confectioners' sugar, for rolling)

Steps

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 180°C (355°F) using static/conventional heat.

2. 2

   Line a baking tray with baking paper.

3. 3

   In a bowl, combine the egg whites, sugar, almond meal, vanilla paste, citrus zest, and citrus juice (or liqueur).

4. 4

   Mix the ingredients together until a soft, sticky dough forms. Be persistent; it may look like wet sand at first, but keep mixing and pressing until it comes together.

5. 5

   Roll the mixture into small balls, about the size of a walnut.

6. 6

   Place a walnut piece on each ball and gently press it into the dough.

7. 7

   Roll each ball generously in icing/confectioners’ sugar until well coated.

8. 8

   Arrange the cookies on the prepared tray, leaving a little space between them.

9. 9

   Bake for 20 minutes.

Notes

The amaretti will be soft when they come out of the oven—this is exactly what you want. As they cool, they’ll firm up on the outside while remaining beautifully fudgy and moist in the center. Allow to cool completely on the tray before serving. You can adapt the recipe by using ground hazelnut or ground pistachio instead of almonds, and swapping mandarin for lemon zest or limoncello.

Nutrition per serving

• dessert
• cookie
• gluten-free
• dairy-free
• baked
• Italian
• holiday