Perfectly chewy on the inside, crunchy on the outside amaretti biscuits; a quick, simple and naturally gluten free recipe anyone can make at home. ?
Have you ever thought about making your own amaretti biscuits, but didn’t even let your mind go there because of the assumption that they’re probably too much of a hassle?
On one hand I think there’s an assumption that ‘expensive = difficult’ at times when it comes to cooking (and it’s true that these little Italian delights can get pretty costly depending on the brand), but then there’s also the dreaded meringue…
But let me tell you, these delicious little Italian balls of almond goodness are as easy as it gets when it comes to baking cookies. You can whip these up in the space of 10 minutes and for a fraction of the normal cost too.
And as for the meringue, don’t run away just yet! I promise it’s a lot easier than it seems once you learn some basic fail-proof techniques.
My meringue tips:
1. Use fresh, good quality and room temperature eggs.
2. Make sure your bowl and paddle attachments (or whisk, if you’re brave enough to do it manually!) are completely clean as even the tiniest bit of grease can mess up a meringue. A good technique to prevent this is to wipe them with a sheet of kitchen towel soaked in lemon or lime juice before getting started.
3. Be careful when separating the eggs, you don’t want any egg yolk to end up in the bowl at all. A simple way to do this is to gentlycrack the egg into your hand and let the egg white drip into the bowl through your fingers. It’s easier than the usual technique of passing the egg yolk from shell to shell which can break the yolk if poked by a sharp edge.
4. Use a metal or glass bowl. Plastic bowls are harder to wash and more likely to have specks of grease leftover in little cracks.
Homemade Amaretti Biscuits Recipe:
- 1 egg white (30g)
- 90g ground almonds
- 75g caster sugar
- 1 tsp almond extract (or amaretto liqueur)
- ½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
- 2-3 Tbsp Icing sugar (to roll the cookies in)
COOKING TIME: 15-20 mins
If using amaretto liqueur, you'll need to add a bit more.
For biscuits that spread a bit more, add less ground almonds.
*This recipe only makes 9 small cookies so multiply as needed. 🙂
Directions
- Prepare the meringue: separate the egg white and discard the yolk, then beat it on low/medium speed in a bowl with an electric hand mixer until it forms stiff peaks. Basically you should be able to hold the bowl upside down without the content falling out (as in the picture above).
- Gently fold in the ground almonds, caster sugar and almond extract with a spoon or spatula until well combined.
- Shape the cookie dough into balls with your hands and roll them in icing sugar until completely covered. Then place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
- Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C (356F) for about 20 minutes or until golden.
Enjoy!
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