Ingredients
- 1 lb Almond Paste
- 1 lb Pignoli Nuts
- 2 Cups white sugar
- 4 Egg whites, beaten
- Parchment paper
Preparation
Step 1
Read everything before making them. Either make crescent shapes or just drop tablespoon fulls that will cook into round cookies.
Instructions are, put almond paste in a bowl and cream with sugar until smooth. It does not tell you how to do this and in the early days I used to pinch pieces off and then alternate with sugar and paste pieces then try to mush it al together with my hands. The last few years I started using my mixer and I would cut pieces of paste into the bowl and then add the sugar. Then I would use the mixer (slowly or it will fly all over) to mix the two together until it is well mixed. Beat the egg whites until firm, peaks will form when taking the beaters out. Mix with the almond paste/sugar mixture. When you mix it, it will be a very wet dough. This is the beginning of the pain in the ass part. The typical shape of a pignoli cookie is a crescent shape. To do that you take about a tablespoon (stop measuring it just grab a small hunk!). I used to put the hunk in my left hand, lightly wet the tips of my right hand fingers and then roll it on my hand into a strand about the width of my hand. Then roll this in a plate of pignoli nuts so they get on all sides. In the last few years I started getting frustrated with trying to make crescents and I just dropped a dollop onto the nuts and then placed it on cookie sheet. They spread out and become round cookies. Some bakeries are making round pignolis now too.
Prepare a cookie sheet by placing a piece of parchment paper on it. Place the cookie on the parchment paper making a curve crescent shape. Separate an inch or more apart because they grow when they cook. Bake on 350 for about 15 minutes BUT watch them because ovens cook differently.
Tricks:
These are a pain in the ass because when cooked on a cookie sheet lightly greased they stick and break when you take them off, when cooked on parchment paper they still break sometimes but they are still soft so if you shape them back together they will cool and harden in shape. I used to bring the cookie sheet to the counter and pull the parchment paper off cookie sheet onto the counter to cool. You will have to test here, sometimes they come off easy when still warm and sometimes they come off better if you wait til they cool. Don’t use wax paper because it seems to stick, parchment is better.
These were favorites of both Grandmas, but later when Grandma Mad had diverticulitis and couldn’t eat nuts I would make some without the pignolis for her.