Almond Cookies with Soft Cherry Heart are tender and delicious pastries with a juicy filling of syrupy cherries and lots of powdered sugar.
They are classic almond sweets that are part of the culinary tradition of many regions in southern Italy, always found in pastry shops alongside dry almond pastries, also made in different shapes and flavors like orange, lemon, bergamot, and pistachio.
Here in Calabria they are always present and the stars of dessert buffets for every occasion!
The preparation is very simple and they are gluten and lactose-free, perfect for those with intolerances.
Add the almond cookies to your list of other Christmas sweets, you can also prepare them in advance, and if stored well, they will keep for over a week!
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- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 12
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for Almond Cookies with Soft Cherry Heart
- 7 oz almond flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg white
- 1 vial almond flavoring
- to taste syrupy cherries
- to taste powdered sugar
Tools
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Refrigerator
- 1 parchment paper
- 1 Baking Pan
- 1 Oven
Steps for Almond Cookies with Soft Cherry Heart
If you don’t have almond flour, you can make it by blending blanched almonds with a bit of sugar taken from the ingredients.
Pour the almond flour into a bowl, then add the egg white and almond flavor vial, mix everything well, and work the dough with your hands until you get a soft dough ball.
Close in a container with a lid or with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the fridge for about 1 hour, the rest will make the dough easy to work with, otherwise, it would be too wet and sticky.
After the necessary time, take the dough ball from the fridge, take pieces of dough about 1 oz each, spread it on the palm of your hand, insert a cherry drained from the syrup, close and shape it into an oval or round form, as you prefer.
Roll in powdered sugar and then place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spaced apart, if you like you can also roll them in almond flakes, making them stick well, as they are often used in pastry shops.
After finishing the dough, let the cookies rest for about 30 minutes in the fridge and then bake.
Bake the almond cookies with cherries in a preheated oven at 356°F with fan for about 10-12 minutes, they should just start to color, when cooked the almond cookies should remain light in color!They will be very soft, do not touch them immediately, as soon as they cool a bit, sprinkle more powdered sugar over them, place them on trays and serve!
Also try the Calabrian almond cookies dry pastries with candied fruits
Storage and Tips
The cookies can be stored for about 1 week and remain soft if kept well sealed in a cookie tin.
The cookies can be made in different shapes such as round, elongated, pinched, or flower-shaped using a pastry bag, they can also be decorated with cherries on the outside.
The dough can also be flavored with bergamot, orange, or lemon.
FAQ
Can I flavor the almond cookies?
Yes, you can add almond essence, vanilla, bergamot, orange, or others according to your taste.
