Ricciarelli (Sienese Christmas Biscuits)
Ricciarelli (Sienese Christmas Biscuits) is a traditional Italian recipe (from Sienna) for a classic almond and rose water biscuit (cookie) that is served at Christmas time, dusted with plenty of icing sugar for a traditional chocolate and almond biscuit (cookie) that is typically prepared for the Christmas season. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Italian version of: Sienese Christmas Biscuits (Ricciarelli).
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
20 minutes
Total Time:
40 minutes
Makes:
14
Rating: 
Tags : Vegetarian RecipesBaking RecipesItaly Recipes
The original recipe for these traditional Christmas biscuits from Sienna is centuries old. Tough the basic recipe remains true to the original, these versions are slightly updated (but just as they are made in Sienna right now).
Ingredients:
2 large egg whites
175g ground almonds
1 tbsp plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
300g icing sugar
1 tbsp almond extract
1 tbsp Amaretto liqueur
finely-grated zest of 1/2 orange
1 tbsp candied orange peel (or candied lemon peel)
350g good quality dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids)
Method:
Sift together the icing sugar, flour and baking powder into a bowl then stir in the ground almonds.
Lightly beat the egg whites in a bowl, add a few drops of almond extract, then continue beating the egg whites until they form soft peaks.
Stir the beaten egg whites into the fry ingredients to form a sticky dough. At this point add either the orange zest and candied peel OR add the Amaretto.
Sift icing sugar onto a board. Take tablespoonfuls of the dough and roll in the sugar, so that you get a ball. Flatten the ball slightly with the back of a fork, then transfer to a baking tray lined with greaseproof (waxed) paper. Repeat until all the dough has been used up — make certain to leave enough space between the biscuits for them to spread.
Transfer to an oven pre-heated to 200°C and bake for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Remove from the oven, allow to cool on the baking tray for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
If you want to prepare chocolate-coated versions of these biscuits, then melt the chocolate either in a bain-marie (double boiler) or carefully in the microwave. Allow the chocolate to cool slightly then dip in the cooled biscuits. Arrange on a sheet of greaseproof (waxed) paper for the chocolate to cool and set.
The biscuits will keep for up to two weeks if kept in an air-tight container.
Find more Christmas Recipes Here
)