Almond Pears Amygthalota Recipes

AMYGDALOTA (Αμυγδαλωτά)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
• In a medium sized bowl whisk to combine the almond flour with the salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, using the hand held mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk together 3 of the egg whites with the cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Next add the almond extract and the superfine sugar to the whisked egg whites and beat until well combined and your mixture appears glossy.
• Fold in the almond flour using a rubber spatula. Your dough will be stiff at this point but mix well until you end up with a uniform batter.
• Add in the last 2 egg whites and beat to combine using your hand held mixer. (At this point we switch to the paddle attachments of the hand held mixer).
• Attach a large star shaped piping tip to your piping bag. Fill your piping bag with the cookie batter and pipe cookies onto a parchment lined cookie tray. Leave about 1 inch between cookies and pipe your cookies so that they are about 1 inch high. If you do not have a piping bag you can simply use a tablespoon or mini ice cream scooper to form balls of cookie dough.
• Place a slivered almond on top of each cookie.
• Bake in the middle rack of your oven for between 17 - 19 minutes until golden brown on the bottom of the cookie. The baking time will depend on how you have shaped your amygdalota.
• Remove your baking tray from the oven and allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking tray.
• Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Enjoy!

AMYGDALOTA: GREEK-STYLE CHEWY ALMOND COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 °F, 165 °C.
• In a large mixing bowl whisk the egg whites on high speed until thick and stiff.
• In a large mixing bowl combine the almond flour, salt, sugar, almond extract, and orange blossom water. Mix together until combined.
• Fold the whipped egg whites into the almond flour mixture until a dough is formed.
• Note:For a more dense, firm cookie, keep the dough very dense by adding up to 455 grams of almond flour to it. Dense cookie dough will not spread during baking. For a flatter cookie, allow the dough to be slightly looser.
• Using a small ice cream scoop or 2 spoons, scoop walnut-sized pieces of dough onto baking trays lined with parchment paper.
• Alternately, fill a piping bag that has been fitted with the star attachment with the batter. Do not fill more than halfway. Pipe swirls of these cookies onto baking trays that have been lined with parchment paper.
• Sprinkle some sliced almonds over the top of each cookie.
• Bake on the center rack of the oven for 15 minutes. The cookies will be pale and slightly golden around the edges.
• If baking 2 trays together, make sure to rotate the baking sheets from top to bottom halfway through baking.
• Allow the cookies to cool completely.
• If decorating with chocolate, spread some melted chocolate on the bottom of each cookie place the cookies chocolate-side up on the baking tray until they set. You may also place them in the freezer or refrigerator for 15-20 minutes or until the chocolate hardens.
• Enjoy!

ALMOND PEARS -- AMYGTHALOTA

Steps:

• Place almonds and 2 tablespoons sugar in food processor. Pulse until fine. Put almonds is large bowl.
• Add remaining sugar, semolina, and 6 tablespoons orange flower water. Knead this mixture, in bowl, to a soft dough. Add 1-2 additional tablespoons orange flower water, if dough is too stiff.
• Break off small pieces, the size of a golf ball and shape into pears. At the end of each, insert 1 clove for the stem.
• Arrange upright on a buttered and floured baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 300°F
• Cool on wire rack. When the pears are completely cool, give them a quick dip in orange flower water and quickly coat them in confectioner's sugar. After a few minutes coat them again in confectioner's sugar.