The holidays are all about Family, Love, Faith and Presents. So, this week I will share a bit of our family and the holiday cookies they love. I will have faith that you will love the recipes as much as we do and for the present part I am doing a Baking Bonanza Giveaway all week! (details below)
My husband was raised by an Italian mother and his grandfather (his mothers father) ran an Italian grocery store. He likes all things Italian, especially the food. He has very fond memories of his mothers cooking when he was a little boy and still asks for her to make her artichokes for him when we visit, the man loves them. He also fondly talks of all the times he would work in his grandfathers grocery store or help him in his garden.
Jim age 4, he is so darn cute!
So of course his favorite Christmas Cookie is the Pignoli’s. A chewy almond goodie topped with Pine Nuts (Pignoli in Italian).
Because I love the guy so darn much I always am sure to make a batch up for him. These seem to be the first ones to disappear off the cookie plate during the holidays, so make sure you treat the ones you love with a taste of these little italian biscotto’s.
If you are a fan of italian cookies check out my recipe for Anisette Cookies.
Makes about 24 cookies
Ingredients:
- 8 ounces pignoli (pine nuts)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- Dash salt
- 1 8-ounce can almond paste
- 2 egg whites, slightly beaten
- 1/2 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
- Confectioner’s sugar for dusting
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with silpat liners or parchment. Place pine nuts “pignoli” in a shallow dish.
Combine granulated sugar, confectioners’ sugar, flour and salt in a medium bowl and lightly toss.
Place almond paste in a mixing bowl of an electric mixer and mix to break up. Add beaten egg whites and mix on low speed until smooth. Add almond extract and flour mixture and beat until flour is blended in, about 30 seconds. Do not over beat.
Using a teaspoon or a scooper (like the Pampered Chef Scoop that is this weeks giveaway), scoop up a rounded spoon of dough and push dough side into the pine nuts so that they stick to dough.
Ease dough out of scoop so that pine nuts are facing up on baking sheet. Place 2″ apart and re-apply any loose nuts.
Bake cookies for about 25 minutes. Use the shorter baking time if you like soft cookies; the longer baking time if you like them chewy. Cool 1 minute and remove to a rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.
- 8 ounces pignoli (pine nuts)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup confectioners' sugar
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- Dash salt
- 1 8-ounce can almond paste
- 2 egg whites, slightly beaten
- ½ teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
- Confectioner's sugar for dusting
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with silpat liners or parchment. Place pine nuts "pignoli" in a shallow dish.
- Combine granulated sugar, confectioners' sugar, flour and salt in a medium bowl and lightly toss.
- Place almond paste in a mixing bowl of an electric mixer and mix to break up. Add beaten egg whites and mix on low speed until smooth. Add almond extract and flour mixture and beat until flour is blended in, about 30 seconds. Do not over beat.
- Using a teaspoon or a scooper, scoop up a rounded spoon of dough and push dough side into the pine nuts so that they stick to dough. Ease dough out of scoop so that pine nuts are facing up on baking sheet. Place 2" apart and re-apply any loose nuts.
- Bake cookies for about 25 minutes. Use the shorter baking time if you like soft cookies; the longer baking time if you like them chewy. Cool 1 minute and remove to a rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar.
About Amy Stafford
You can usually find me in my garden, the kitchen, at the gym or spending time with my family. I love sharing recipes, gardening and exercise tips and stories of my backyard chickens and beekeeping.
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Hi, I am Amy, food photographer, recipe developer, food lover, organic garden maven, fitness nut and lover of Airedales
{ 26 comments… read them below or add one }
Big Daddy is the best!! Thanks for the sweet pics and family recipe
I like gingerbread cookies.
I like biscotti
Spritz cookies are the cutest.
I will have to add these to my “holiday” baking recipes! Looks yummy!
Are you sure you’re supposed to put pignoli on a COOKIE?
I love sugar cookies made with Irish butter!
I love homemade turtles, the ones with pecans, caramel, and chocolate.
my favorite christmas cookies have to be sugar cookies with frosting!!
I love to make biscotti :)I did like 4 batches already
Andrea,
You sound as bad as me. When I get on a roll the cookies are being made!
I love pistachio chocolate biscotti’s, but always struggle with the cutting for the second baking.
Any tricks you can share?
Amy
Wow! Those look so amazingly good. I can’t wait to try them!
Thanks Lori, let me know what ya think!
My favorite Christmas cookie is a decorated sugar cookie!!!
oh mine too Megan!
I love all kinds of christmas cookies!! To me christmas is sugar cookies wrapped like candy canes and mexican wedding cookies and peanut butter blossoms and my grandma’s homemade fudge to go along with!
Greta,
You sound like my kinda girl. We could gorge on some cookies. I just got my moms homemade fudge recipe, I plan on making a batch to share this holiday!
xo Amy
I’m pretty simple, a good chocolate chip cookie is my favorite!
I like sugar cookies.
I love a classic chewy chocolate chip cookie!
I love SnickerDoodle cookies and sugar cookies shapes with sprinkles on them.
This recipe is easy and fairly quick. I loved how these cookies came out and have added them to my Christmas cookie list. Thank you for such a great pignoli cookie recipe!
Wow Kari, Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know that you added them to your cookie list. Makes me smile.
xo Amy
Amy….I live in Toronto, and I have searched high & low & back and forth for Pignoli cookies, without finding a crumb. My father is from Staten Island, NY and everytime we would visit the family, I stopped at the corner bakery and got me some Pignoli Cookies on the way in, during and on the way home from our visit. I tried a couple of recipes, but none were close to the texture of the one’s from the Staten Island bakery. I am going home to try your recipe tonight. I am soooooo excited. I’ll keep you posted!
Kathie,
Hope you loved them. It is one of my all time favorite cookies!
xo Amy
I made the Pignoli cookies and they are awesome. I got compliments from friends that said the Pignoli cookies they bought in NY from an Italian bakery are not as good as mine. Thank you for sharing!
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