Ricciarelli Recipes

RICCIARELLI: CHEWY ITALIAN ALMOND COOKIES

Steps:

• Whip egg whites and lemon juice together with a stand mixer or hand mixer until stiff peaks form.
• Using a fine mesh sieve, sift in almond flour, 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar, salt, and baking powder and fold into egg whites. I don't do it all at once but maybe in 2-3 batches. Try to keep some air in the egg whites, but at this point it will form a pretty sticky dough rather than a fluffy meringue.
• Add orange zest, vanilla extract, and almond extract and fold in until combined.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using clean hands, roll dough into balls about 1" in diameter, then roll in powdered sugar until well coated. Shape into an oval, then arrange on baking sheet with some space between them for spreading, and flatten slightly.
• Leave at room temperature for about an hour or until the tops have dried out and formed almost a little shell. (This may take longer in humid areas.) Pre-crack the shell by squeezing the cookies slightly from opposite corners. (Not doing this won't affect the taste, but pre-cracking them makes them much prettier if you want that beautiful white-gold contrast!)
• While cookies are drying, preheat oven to 300 degrees. When the cookies are ready, bake for about 20 minutes. Cool and store in an airtight container. These are even better the next day and are great with coffee or tea!

RICCIARELLI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F, and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Add the almonds, baking soda, salt and 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar to a food processor. Process until finely ground, about 1 minute.
• Whisk together the honey, vanilla and egg. Add to the almond mixture and pulse until a stiff dough forms.
• Roll tablespoon-sized portions of dough into balls, and coat in the remaining cup confectioners' sugar. Place at least 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake, rotating halfway through, until cracked and solid to the touch, 18 to 20 minutes. Slide the parchment off the baking sheets and allow the ricciarelli to cool completely before peeling off the paper. Store cookies in a tin or airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

RICCIARELLI

Steps:

• Combine white sugar and almonds in the bowl of a food processor; pulse into a fine powder. Pour into a bowl.
• Combine 1/4 cup egg whites and vanilla extract in a bowl; add to almond-sugar mixture, mixing as little as possible. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 12 hours.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Remove dough from fridge. Sift 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar and flour onto a clean work surface. Place dough in the center and add remaining 1/4 cup egg whites. Knead egg whites into dough until soft and smooth, adding additional confectioners' sugar and flour as needed.
• Roll portions of dough into 1-inch-thick logs. Take walnut-sized dough pieces from each log and shape into diamonds with slightly wet hands. Place cookies on the prepared baking sheet and generously dust with confectioner's sugar. Let rest at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake cookies in the preheated oven until lightly golden, 7 to 8 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet before serving.

TUSCAN ALMOND COOKIES (RICCIARELLI)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Toast almonds on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing once, until golden, 5-8 minutes; let cool.
• Pulse almonds, lemon zest, and 1/4 cup powdered sugar in a food processor until finely ground. Whisk egg white and salt in a large bowl to medium peaks. Whisking constantly, gradually add 1/4 cup powdered sugar; whisk until egg white is very stiff but not dry. Fold in almond mixture and vanilla. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of batter onto a parchment-lined baking sheet; using wet hands, flatten tops and press sides to make rounded diamond shapes. Chill 30 minutes.
• Bake ricciarelli until edges are lightly golden and firm and centers are still a little soft, 10-12 minutes; let cool on baking sheet. Dust with powdered sugar.

RICCIARELLI - TUSCAN ALMOND COOKIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites with the lemon juice until stiff peaks form.
• Use a fine sieve to sift the almond flour and powdered sugar into the bowl.
• Add the extracts and gently fold the egg whites into the other ingredients until mixed.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, and use your hands to roll the dough into 1 1/2 inch balls.
• Roll each ball into the extra powdered sugar until well coated.
• Shape the balls into an oval, and arrange on the prepared baking sheets with room for spreading between.
• Let the cookies sit at room temperature for at least an hour, or until the exterior of the cookies have dried out and feels firm to the touch.
• While the cookies dry, preheat oven to 300 degrees F., then bake for about 20 minutes.
• Cool completely, then store in an airtight container.

ITALIAN ALMOND COOKIES (RICCIARELLI) - GLUTEN FREE!

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 190°C/375°F (170°C fan). Line 2 trays with baking/parchment paper.
• Combine Dry Ingredients: Place the almond meal, sugar, zest, almond extract and salt in a bowl. Whisk together until zest and almond extract is evenly distributed. Add the cherries and set aside
• Beat eggs whites: Using an electric mixer or a whisk, beat the egg whites and honey to soft peaks (Note 5). About 2 minutes on Speed 8 of a handheld beater, or 1 1/2 minutes on Speed 6 of a stand mixer.
• Fold the beaten egg whites gently into the almond mixture. You will seemingly knock most of the air out of the meringue, that's ok! (You actually haven't :) ).