Spanish Almond Cookies Recipe (Almendrados)
Spanish Almond Cookies Recipe - These very easy Spanish Almond cookies know as Almendrados are often served on Christmas Eve, but of course are delicious any time of the year.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
24-30 cookies
Ingredients
1 lb (1/2 kg) ground almonds
1 1/4 cups (1/2 lb = 250 gr) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
Method
Heat oven to 360F (180C) degrees.
Grate the lemon peel, avoiding the white part of the peel because it is bitter.
Separate the yolks from the egg whites. In a small glass or ceramic mixing bowl, beat the egg whites to a stiff peak.
Place the egg whites into a medium mixing bowl, and gently stir in the egg yolks. (No need to mix thoroughly.)
Add the granulated sugar, lemon zest, ground almonds, and optionally the cinnamon, mixing thoroughly.
Using your hands, shape the cookies into mounds or pyramids and place on a greased cookie sheet, or one covered in parchment paper.
Bake in oven on center rack for approximately 15 minutes, until cookies turn a golden colour. Remove from oven and gently loosen the cookies using a spatula. Allow to cool on a rack.
Note: Remove quickly from baking sheet. Do not allow cookies to cool completely on the cookie sheet because once cooled, they will harden and become brittle (and will crumble when you attempt to remove them.)
Store in a tightly covered container or tin.
did you know - Almonds Deliver a Massive Amount of Nutrients.
Almonds boast an impressive nutrient profile. A 1-ounce (28-gram) serving of almonds contains
Fibre: 3.5 grams Protein: 6 grams Fat: 14 grams (9 of which are monounsaturated) Vitamin E: 37% of the RDI Manganese: 32% of the RDI Magnesium: 20% of the RDI. They also contain a decent amount of copper, vitamin B2 (riboflavin) and phosphorus.
This is all from a small handful, which supplies only 161 calories and 2.5 grams of digestible carbohydrates.
They are native to the Middle East, but the US is now the world’s largest producer.
They are also used to produce almond milk, oil, butter, flour or paste — also known as marzipan.
