When I tasted these little devils in Siena, I thought mmmm, easily a daily addiction:)
Little pillows of heaven….
I didn’t realise they were made with a marzipan like paste called Mandorle.
In fact I am not 100% sure what the difference is….
I thought they were very similar or the same dependant on which country you lived in.
Had a quick look and apparently Marzipan is Almond paste with more sugar added, very simply.
Also Marzipan is used more for icing but Almond paste is used more as a filling:)
Ok…..Lets get into it as these are easy peasy and so nice….
soft and light…yet chewy…
What will you need?
The willpower of Job when they are made.
I could not stop eating them.I expected them to be very very sweet once i found out what was in them but no…..
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1 cup of ground almonds
400g Almond paste (mandorle)
2 egg whites
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla essence or extract
Icing sugar for working with and dusting.
Sitting,……waiting….
Mix almonds and almond paste in a mixing bowl until smooth and combined.
Add egg white and mix until well combined.
Add vanilla and baking powder.
The cookie dough should be firm and a little sticky.
Put the flour on a lightly dusted icing sugar are/ board and roll into a long log.
Slice small pieces off the log, about 2 cms, and shape into diamonds or rounds.
Sift the icing sugar over the cookie and flatten a little.
Place on a baking tray and leave , uncovered , for at least an hour, if not overnight.
Cooling…..
Preheat the oven to 150 Celsius.
Place tray in the oven and bake 20-30 minutes, until very light tan.
Not brown or crisp as they are supposed to be soft:)
Remove from oven and cool on racks.
When you can no longer contain yourself, ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY.
With Sicilian almond biscuits…
Soft little pillows…
Make yourself a nice cup of tea or coffee, put the biscuits on a nice plate, and maybe even drink your tea/ coffee from a cup and saucer…
Sit back, enjoy, sip, nibble…………..
Afternoon tea like ladies….
