Pignoli Cookies Recipe (Pine Nut Cookies)
These soft and chewy Pignoli Cookies (Italian Pine Nut Cookies) are a classic Italian treat made with almond paste, egg whites, sugar, and buttery pine nuts. They have a tender, chewy center with lightly crisp edges and plenty of toasted pine nut flavor. Made with just a few ingredients and ready in about 25 minutes, these traditional Italian cookies are perfect for holiday cookie trays and special occasions.
Servings: 24 cookies
Equipment
- Medium Cookie Scoop holds 1 ½ tablespoons
Ingredients
- 16 ounces almond paste 454g, you will need two tubes
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar 298g
- 3 large egg whites 90g
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 ounces pine nuts for rolling 170g
- powdered sugar confectioners sugar, for dusting
- 2 teaspoons of either orange or lemon zest optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Place pinenuts in a small bowl and set aside.
- Cut the almond paste into 1-inch pieces and put it in the bowl of a food processor. Watch your fingers near the blade. Add the sugar, zest (if using), and salt and pulse until combined, about 1 minute. It will resemble cornmeal.
- Add 1/2 of the egg whites and process for about 30 seconds. Slowly add the rest* of the egg whites until a sticky dough forms (*If you don't weigh the egg whites, you may not need all the egg whites since egg whites in each egg vary). The dough will be wet and sticky. Grease your hands before rolling.
- Scoop out rounded tablespoons of dough and roll them into 1-inch balls. You can also use a cookie scoop. I like to oil my cookie scoop, so extracting the dough from the scoop is effortless.
- Roll the dough balls in the pine nuts until covered on all sides.
- Place the dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet 2 inches apart and bake until the nuts turn golden brown, about 15-17 minutes. Do not overbake, or they will become too hard.
- Dust cooled cookies with powdered sugar, and enjoy!
Notes
- Use almond paste, not marzipan. The two ingredients aren't interchangeable and will produce different results.
- Weigh the egg whites if possible. Egg sizes vary, and too much egg white can make the dough overly loose.
- Don't worry if the dough is sticky. Lightly oil your hands or cookie scoop to make shaping easier.
- Coat the dough generously with pine nuts. Press them gently into the dough so they stay attached during baking.
- Don't overbake. The cookies should be lightly golden and still soft in the center when they come out of the oven.
Nutrition
Calories: 185kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Sodium: 33mg | Potassium: 109mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 2IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 1mg
