Chocolate Chip Pinches are simple and fragrant cookies without flour, butter, oil, milk, or yeast, truly delicious, reminiscent of Sicilian almond pastries. The Christmas holidays are almost over, dried fruits are consumed a lot these days, and I thought of making perfect little cookies also for the gluten intolerant, with almond flour, that were a hit. They didn’t even last two days! Chocolate Chip Pinches are prepared in 10 minutes, bake quickly, and are so soft that they melt in your mouth, perfect for breakfast, a snack, or after a meal, ideal to put in the Befana’s stocking or to give as gifts because they keep for several days!
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 15 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven, Electric Oven, Air Fryer
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All Seasons, Christmas
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups almond flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
- 2 egg whites
- 1 pinch salt
- to taste almond flavoring
- to taste powdered sugar
Steps
Chocolate Chip Pinches are very simple and quick to prepare. First, put the almond flour (if you don’t have it, you can finely chop peeled almonds until they turn into flour), sugar, a pinch of salt in a bowl, and mix.
Add the beaten egg whites (from large eggs) with a fork, almond flavoring, dark chocolate chips, and mix well all the ingredients. You should get a soft but quite compact dough.
Take a bit of dough, form a ball, and roll it in powdered sugar, then pinch it with your thumb and index finger to make all the chocolate chip pinches this way.
Arrange the pastries on a non-stick baking sheet (or lined with parchment paper) and bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for 12-15 minutes, they should lightly brown.
Tips:
Chocolate Chip Pinches can be stored at room temperature (better if in an airtight container or bag) for up to two weeks. You can use any dried fruit you prefer, such as hazelnuts or walnuts. Use egg whites from large eggs; if you only have small or medium ones, you might need an extra one.
More pastry recipes HERE
More recipes with dried fruit HERE
More almond dessert recipes HERE
