09 Oct Pinolate (Pine nut cookies)
Be Inspired with Roberta Muir (recipes are double tested in her domestic kitchen)
These simple Ligurian pine nut cookies have a wonderfully chewy soft centre with a crisp outer and delicious nutty flavour. Also called pignoli or amaretti con pignoli, they’re traditionally made with a mix of bitter and sweet almonds. As bitter almonds can be hard to find, I use marzipan mixed with some ground and slivered almonds for texture. They soften a little when stored, so are best eaten within 24 hours of baking. Enjoy!
Makes 12–15
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INGREDIENTS
- 200g marzipan, chopped
- 50g slivered almonds
- 50g castor sugar
- 100g ground almond
- 2 egg whites
- 45g pine nuts
- Icing sugar, for sprinkling
METHOD
- Preheat oven to 200°C.
- Place marzipan, slivered almonds, sugar and half the ground almond in a small food processor and blitz to combine.
- Add egg whites and blitz to form a soft dough.
- Transfer to a bowl and stir in remaining ground almond.
- Spread pine nuts on a small plate.
- With moistened hands, roll walnut-sized pieces of the dough into balls.
- Flatten them slightly and press the top into the pine nuts and place on a baking paper-lined oven tray, nut side up.
- Bake for 10–15 minutes, until firm and lightly coloured.
- Set aside to cool, sprinkle with icing sugar and serve.
Roberta Muir – cookbook author, restaurant reviewer, food and lifestyle writer – has a passion for good cooking, eating and drinking, and exciting travel in search of all three.
