One of the most popular of all Italian cookies, these Chewy Amaretti or Italian Almond cookies have a crisp exterior and amazing chewy texture on the inside! This classic cookie takes minutes to prepare!Christmas is just around the corner and if you're looking for one more cookie recipe to fill up your cookie tray, these Chewy Amaretti are the perfect choice!
I never truly appreciated these cookies until I finally learned to make them myself. I've tried tons of bakery bought amaretti throughout the years. But now that I've made my own, I definitely never need to buy any again.
These amaretti are soft and chewy on the inside, amaretti morbidi as they are called in Italian, and take only minutes to prepare!
Can ground almonds be used in place of almond flour?
I used almond flour made with blanched almonds which can be purchased here. However, you can substitute finely ground blanched whole almonds instead. You may also use almonds which are not blanched (that is with the skin still on), this will simply result in amaretti that have a darker color due to the skins.
Can amaretti cookies be frozen?
Yes, my mother makes large batches and freezes them all the time! This is particularly useful during the holidays if you want to prepare several batches in advance.
Place completely cooled amaretti in an airtight container or in well sealed freezer bags. Take them out the night before serving and let defrost at room temperature in an airtight container. I would not freeze them for more than 3 months.
The following are step by step instructions to guide you through the recipe. Please scroll to the end of this post for the detailed printable recipe card.
Step by Step Instructions:
Beat sugar and an egg together in a bowl.
Next, add the flavorings: amaretto extract and a bit of almond extract. Most amaretti recipes don't add any almond extract but I feel it really heightens the almond flavor. I also experimented with Amaretto liqueur, however I preferred the flavor with the extract instead.Stir in almond flour, all-purpose flour and baking powder into the sugar/egg mixture to make a sticky but firm dough.Roll the dough into little balls and dredge in powdered sugar. This is what gives them their crackled appearance when baked.
I top mine with almonds or maraschino cherries for a festive appearance (as my mom does!), but you can also leave them plain.Place on a parchment covered baking sheet.Bake in a 350 degrees F preheated oven for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned underneath and golden and crackly on top. Let cool before serving.
Check out my web story on how to make amaretti here!Recipe Notes
Substitutions and Variations:
- Almond flour may be substituted with finely ground blanched almonds.
- If you don't have access to amaretto extract, you may substitute with Amaretto liqueur. Use from 1-2 tablespoons as the amaretto extract is more concentrated. You may also have to add a bit more almond flour in order to achieve a firmer dough.
Tips:
- The key to getting a cookie with a crisp exterior and chewy interior is the perfect dough texture. I tried numerous times and got flat and crispy cookies. Apparently my dough was too soft. With these cookies a firm dough results in a cookie that retains its shape and remains chewy on the inside.
- Please note that the baking time may vary according to your oven. I suggest you begin checking your cookies after 12 minutes of baking. They are ready when lightly browned underneath and golden and crackly on the top.
Storage:
- Amaretti may be frozen in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
These cookies are perfect any time of the year, not just the holidays. Give them a try and let me know how much you enjoyed them by rating this recipe in the recipe card below. Feel free to Pin this recipe for later.
Happy holidays dear readers and lots of health and happiness for the New Year!
Here are a few other favorite Italian cookie recipes!
- Classic Almond Biscotti with Variations
- Easy Anise Biscotti Recipe
- Cuccidati - Sicilian Fig Cookies
- Soft and Chewy Lemon Almond Cookies
- Chocolate Pizzelle
- Biscotti di San Martino
- 3-Ingredient Hazelnut Cookies
- Italian Lemon Glazed Cookies
- Pistachio Amaretti
- Italian Nut and Jam Rolled Cookies
- Chocolate Espresso Amaretti
- Biscotti Regina
- Tetù (Sicilian Chocolate Spice Cookies)
- Italian Pizzelle Cookies
- Raspberry Almond Thumbprint Cookies
- Italian Orange Juice Cookies
- Genovesi Ericine - Sicilian Pastry Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon Amaretto extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 ¾ cups almond flour
- 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 2tbsp. powdered sugar for dredging
- almonds or maraschino cherries for topping optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, beat the egg and sugar. Stir in the Amaretto and almond extracts.
- Add the almond flour and stir until combined. Stir in the flour and baking powder until a firm dough is formed.
- Shape scant tablespoonfuls of dough into a ball. Lightly dredge in the powdered sugar, shaking off excess sugar. Place on baking sheet and top with an almond or maraschino cherry, if desired. Continue with remaining dough.
- Bake for approximately 15 minutes until lightly browned underneath and the tops of the cookies are crackled. Cool on a rack before serving.
Notes
- Almond flour may be substituted with finely ground blanched almonds.
- If you don't have access to amaretto extract, you may substitute with Amaretto liqueur. Use from 1-2 tablespoons as the amaretto extract is more concentrated. You may also have to add a bit more almond flour in order to achieve a firmer dough.
- The key to getting a cookie with a crisp exterior and chewy interior is the correct dough texture. I tried numerous times and got flat and crispy cookies. Apparently my dough was too soft. With these cookies a firm dough results in a cookie that retains its shape and remains chewy on the inside.
- Please note that the baking time may vary according to your oven. I suggest you begin checking your cookies after 12 minutes of baking. They are ready when lightly browned underneath and golden and crackly on the top.
- Amaretti may be frozen in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
- Please note that the nutritional information provided is approximate and may vary according to exact ingredients used.
Nutrition
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Arlene Ferlisi
My husband and I have looked for a recipe for these cookies since we had them in
Modena! These are amazing! I’m excited to find you, my husband’s family is from Bisaquino, Sicily and we love finding new Sicilian recipes.
Nadia
Hello Arlene, so glad to hear you enjoyed my mom's easy recipe! Enjoy and happy holidays to you!
Melanie M. DiSano
Absolutely delicious!! I will make these every Christmas.
Nadia
Hello Melanie, so glad to hear you enjoyed them! Thanks for your comment!
Emmie
Fantastic! This is an easy and authentic tasting recipe. I used amaretto liquor and almond extract and topped with halved drained maraschino cheeries. I’ve also had them with a roasted coffee bean on top. Thank you for the recipe!
Nadia
Hi Emmie, yes indeed it is definitely an easy recipe! Your little personal touches sound very good to me. Thanks for sharing with me!
Enza
The Ultimate Best!
Nadia
Thanks Enza, so glad you enjoyed them!
cookie monster
Hi! I was very much interested in your recipe here, and followed it as best I could.My first try resulted in cookies that were very dense and did not bloom, could not really break them in half, only with a knife but very tasty..Second try, I used different almond flour and the full amount of liquids,result was even harder cookies.. Still very tasty but not something I would put out for tea.. Any helpful suggestion orexplanation is most welcome, because I would like to succeed..Thanks very much.
Nadia
Hello cookie monster, it's hard to say what went wrong. However, I do recall in my first attempts to make the cookies I failed because my dough was too soft. When I made my dough more firm, that is firm enough to roll into balls without the dough being too sticky, the cookies turned out perfect. Also, since not ovens are the same, I'm wondering if perhaps you need to turn yours down to 325F and perhaps bake them a little less. Please let me know if any of these tips work out for you. Good luck!
tom
Hello cookie monster , a common mistake when baking is to use baking soda in place of baking powder.
Fatima
I made 2 of these batches last night and they turned out perfect with a couple of changes. Instead of the almond flour , I used finely ground almonds. I like colour so opted for the "natural" almonds instead of the blanched ones. I also eliminated the flour completely. Finally, I cooked these for only 13 minutes instead. The taste and consistency was wonderful...Simple to make and super fast
Nadia
Hello Fatima, great idea I'm glad they turned out to your liking. Thanks for sharing with me!
Joan Luciano
Sorry, I should have paid better attention to the recipe. I see now that it’s a whole egg and not just egg white. Going to make these tomorrow.
Nadia
No problem, I’m happy to be of help!
Joan Luciy
Can’t wait to make these. I do have a question though. How much do you beat the egg white and sugar? Until just combined or until stiff?
Sandra Castaldini
I made these and my first try they were delizioso!
Nadia
Hi Sandra, so glad you enjoyed them! As you can see they are so easy to make. Thanks for your comment!
Angela
can this recipe be doubled or tripled?
Nadia
Hello Angela, it most definitely can. In fact, when my mom makes these cookies she sometimes even quadruples it. Enjoy and thanks for stopping by my blog!
Anna
Just made these and my taste buds are dancing the tarantella. Being of Italian decent , I simply love to cook and bake. The only thing I did different is that I lowered the cooking time to 13 minutes. I have a convection oven and the fan is always on. They came out perfect!!!!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I will be looking forward to many more .
Nadia
Hi Anna, I love that line "dancing the tarantella"! Of course each oven is different so I can understand that you had to adjust the baking time. I'm so glad you enjoyed them and for taking the time to share this with me. Thanks again!
Cristina
I used to make these many many years ago but your recipe looks easier .. question ... can food colour be added?
Nadia
Hi Cristina, I have never tried doing that myself, however I'm sure you can add a bit of food coloring to the dough without affecting the texture. Let me know how they turn out!
Marianna Petramala
Just finished my second batch of these delicious amaretti. I tweaked your recipe, adding a few extra drops of Amaretto and almond extracts. Also let the dough rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes. The texture was sticky to work with. First batch rolled in icing sugar; delicious, crunchy and then chewy. Forgot to towel dry the maraschino cherries, and yes, they bled giving the cookies a pretty pinkish colour.
Second batch, were perfect. Did half with cherry and half with whole almonds.
Also used icing sugar on my hands to roll into balls and dipped them in sugar.
One of the most simple I have discovered, made, and approved! Thank you.
Nadia
Hi Marianna, so glad you personalized the recipe to make it your own! It is indeed a very simple recipe. Thanks for your comment!
Mary
Yum I’m going to make them tomorrow thank you so much for sharing I couldn’t find my mums recipe..
Nadia
You're very welcome Mary, I hope you enjoy them!
Donna Tantillo
What is the difference between amaretto extract and almond extract?
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hi Donna, Amaretto is a liqueur and so the amaretto extract is derived from that liqueur while almond extract is quite simply from almonds. Hope this helps! Thanks for stopping by my blog!
Domenica
My cookies turned out dry. Cooked for 19 minutes.
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hi Domenica, I’m sorry to hear your cookies didn’t turn out as you expected. It’s hard to say what went wrong however I do know that baking time may vary from one oven to another. Perhaps in your oven they need to bake for less time.
Nonna
What is icing sugar
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Powdered sugar or confectioners sugar. Hope this helps!
Mary
Can you freeze these cookies. I would love to pre make them for the holidays.
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hi Mary, yes you definitely can. My mother freezes them all the time. Thanks for you question!
Maureen
Where do you fine amaretto extract?
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Good morning Maureen, I usually purchase my amaretto extract at a local Italian grocery store. It is always right next to the other extracts such as vanilla, lemon, and others. You can also substitute Amaretto liqueur, I would use about 1 tbsp since it is not as concentrated as the extract. Hope this helps and thanks for stopping by my blog!
tom
Top notch, my Italian wife loved them, thanks! My recommendations: Dry cherries with paper towel before putting on cookie and grease cookie sheet
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hi Tom, so glad your wife loved them. Dabbing the cherries dry on a paper towel is indeed a great idea. I'm just wondering, did you use parchment paper on your cookie sheet? I did so and they did not stick. If you don't use parchment I can see that it would be a good idea to grease the pan first. Thanks so much for your feedback, it is truly appreciated!
Marisa
I love Amaretti cookies and these look so perfect! Hopefully I’ll get to try your version soon Nadia...they would make a lovely addition to my cookie platter!
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Thanks Marisa! I know that your cookie platter already looks amazing ????
Rosa rizk
Beautiful thank you for sharing
mangiabedda@gmail.com
You’re welcome Rosa! Thanks for stopping by!
Sabrina
Hi! Do you happen to have a recipe for sussumelle?
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hi Sabrina, unfortunately not. Can you describe them to me? Are they a Sicilian specialty? Thanks!