Italian Pignoli Cookies (Pine Nut Cookies)
This easy recipe for Pignoli Cookies is the traditional way to make authentic Italian pine nut cookies. They are a soft and chewy cookie on the inside and have a slightly crispy texture on the outside. Easily gluten free.
Servings: 20
Calories: 134kcal
Equipment
- food processor
- Cookie sheet
- Oven
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (225g) almond paste
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup (65g) powdered confectioners sugar
- 3 egg whites divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (65g) plain all-purpose flour (or gluten-free flour)
- 1 cup (135g) pine nuts (pignoli)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F (165C). Line 2 cookie sheets with lightly greased foil, baking parchment paper or a silpat.
- Crumble up the almond paste and add it to a food processor with the granulated sugar, then process until sandy and combined.
- Add in the powdered sugar, 2 of the egg whites and the salt, then whiz again until smooth.
- Put the dough in a bowl in the fridge for 20 minutes to chill ( and become more manageable to handle).
- In a separate small bowl, whisk the remaining egg white. Put the pine nuts onto a side plate and the flour into a small bowl (this flour is for flouring your hands when forming the balls).
- Lightly flour your hands, then roll small tablespoons of the dough into balls. They will be loose and difficult to ‘roll’, but just get them into a ball as much as you can.
- Dip them into the egg white, then roll in the pine nuts, or place onto the cookie sheet (1” apart - they spread) and sprinkle with pine nuts - whichever is easiest.
- Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Place the cookies into the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely
Video
Notes
Ensure you have a thick almond paste (such as Solo canned almond paste), rather than the thinner versions, such as Odense in a tube. Be sure to choose almond paste and not marzipan - they’re not the same! Marzipan is much sweeter.
Or make your own almond paste in just a few minutes. This is the one I use and it's a perfect consistency for pignoli cookies.
The dough for pignoli cookies is very loose and wet. I find putting it into the fridge for at least 20 minutes helps to make it more manageable. Overnight is even better.
It won't be possible to easily roll the dough into actual balls. Just pat it into a rough cookie shape with floured hands (so it doesn't stick to your hands).
If you're really struggling to get the balls into balls, then place spoonfuls onto your baking tray, brush with a little egg white and lightly press on some pine nuts.
Be careful, these cookies spread. Leave an inch between them on the cookie sheet.
If the pine nut cookies break up when removing from the cookie sheet, wait a few minutes and let them cool a little more before removing.
Pingolo spread, so space them well on the cookie sheet and cook in batches.
Pine nuts can be expensive, in order to use less, instead of rolling the cookies in the pine nuts, place them onto the cookie sheet, brush with egg whites and press pine nuts onto the top.
Make sure the almond paste and sugars are pulsed together completely before adding in the wet ingredients.
Nutrition
Calories: 134kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 38mg | Potassium: 87mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 1mg