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Pignoli cookies are traditional Italian cookies made with pine nuts, perfect for Christmas and often given as a sweet homemade gift. They are wonderfully simple, made with just a few ingredients: marzipan, sugar, egg whites and pine nuts. The combination of flavours is irresistible! They have a deliciously intense almond flavour, are crisp on the outside and soft and chewy in the centre, with a texture reminiscent of macarons. The pine nuts give them a rustic, festive character.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The cookie dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days and baked whenever convenient.<\/p>\n

Makes 25 cookies.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ingredients for Pignoli cookies:<\/span><\/p>\n

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• 450 g marzipan<\/li>\n
• 200 g caster sugar<\/li>\n
• 2 egg whites, from medium eggs<\/li>\n
• 150 g pine nuts, or more if needed<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

  All ingredients should be at room temperature.<\/p>\n

  Cut the marzipan into pieces and process in a food processor until it has a sandy texture. Add the sugar and process until combined. Add the egg whites and process again until combined. Leave the mixture to stand for 5 minutes. The dough may sometimes be quite runny, depending on the weight of the egg whites and the quality of the marzipan. Homemade marzipan contains almost 50% almonds, whereas some shop-bought varieties contain only around 25%. If the mixture is too runny, add a little ground almonds (1\u20132 tbsp, for example). The cookie dough should not be runny, but it should not be too firm either, otherwise the cookies will not have the right texture. It should be just firm enough to shape, while remaining very soft and sticky. The cookies should flatten slightly as they bake, so it is best to bake one or two test cookies first.<\/p>\n

  Spread the pine nuts on a plate. Shape the mixture into soft, very sticky balls, then coat one side of each ball generously with pine nuts. Arrange the cookies on baking trays lined with baking paper, leaving plenty of space between them.<\/p>\n

  Bake at 160\u00b0C for approximately 20\u201323 minutes, or until golden. The baking time will depend on the size of the cookies. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the baking tray. They are very delicate while warm and may stick to the baking paper. Once slightly cooled, transfer them to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.<\/p>\n

  Enjoy!<\/p>\n

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  Recipe source: Marcellina in Cucina<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Pignoli cookies are traditional Italian cookies made with pine nuts, perfect for Christmas and often given as a sweet homemade gift. They are wonderfully simple, made with just a few ingredients: marzipan, sugar, egg whites and pine nuts. The combination <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18198,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[72,36,79],"tags":[136,123,97,362,455],"duration":[],"tag_group":[],"class_list":["post-18197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-christmas","category-cookies-biscuits","category-from-all-over-the-world","tag-almonds","tag-dairy-free-recipe","tag-egg-whites","tag-marzipan","tag-pine-nuts"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n