Gluten Free Almond Cookies

These are the chewy almond cookies you find stacked in every Italian bakery window, and they happen to be naturally gluten-free. There’s no flour at all. The body comes entirely from almond paste, which gives them an intense, marzipan-like almond flavor and a soft, chewy center.

Three ingredients are all it takes. Almond paste and sugar provide the chew and sweetness, while egg whites bind everything and lighten the texture so the cookies aren’t dense. Roll the dough in pignoli (pine nuts) for the classic look, or shape it into simple balls or crescents.

Then there’s the clever finishing trick. These bake on plain brown paper, and to release them you slide that paper onto a thoroughly wet dish towel. The steam loosens the cookies in seconds, and they lift off cleanly with a spatula, no sticking and no tearing.

A short bake is all they need before the bottoms turn golden.

Pro Tips

• Don’t skip the wet-towel release, and make sure the towel is truly wet, not just damp. The steam is what frees the cookies from the paper in seconds.
• Bake on ungreased brown paper or parchment with no grease at all. Oil would make these spread and fry rather than set.
• Watch them closely near the end. They’re done when lightly golden and still soft, since they firm up as they cool.

Variations

• Press a whole almond or a candied cherry into the center instead of the pine nut coating.
• Add a few drops of almond extract for an even stronger almond hit.
• Dust the cooled cookies with powdered sugar for an amaretti-style finish.