Almond Cookies

Today was a busy kitchen day that included lots of cool tasty treats, one of those being lemon ice cream.  As a result of making the lemon curd, I had egg whites I needed to use and was reminded of a recipe for these fabulous little almond cookies that I enjoyed on a trip to Italy.  While this isn't quite the same, they are good and I've altered the recipe to be more carb friendly so they can better fit into my way of eating.  

Almond Cookies

Yield: 48 Cookies

Ingredients:

6 egg whites

1 1/2 cups erythritol, or sweetener you prefer

4 1/2 Tablespoons Almond Flour

2 cups almonds

2 Tablespoons fresh lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. 

In a food processor bowl, add the almonds, almond flour, 1 cup of the sweetener and process to a fine powder.  Add the baking powder and lemon zest and pulse to mix well.

In another mixing bowl, add the egg whites and beat until frothy.  Gradually add the remaining sweetener and continue to beat until stiff peaks form.  I use my Kitchen Aid for this job.

Sprinkle about 1/3 of the ground nut mixture over the beaten egg whites and gently fold them in.  Repeat 2 more times until all the nut mixture is folded into the egg whites.

Drop tablespoons of batter onto the parchment lined cookie sheets.  Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes.  (My time was closer to 15, but keep an eye on them because they brown fast once they start.)  Cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to complete cooling.

Store in an airtight container.

Per Cookie:  29 Calories; 2 grams fat; <1 net carb if using erythritol

...and That's What's Cooking at Cathy's ~ Enjoy!

Nutella Meringues

I've been on a baking kick and along with it a Nutella kick.  I see nothing wrong with it!  I quite like Nutella.  Anyway, I had some egg whites I was saving and tried this recipe this afternoon and it is very very good.

Nutella Meringues


Ingredients:

3 large egg whites, at room temperature
a pinch of cream of tartar
a pinch of salt
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon, granulated sugar
1/4 cup Nutella

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Make sure you have one oven rack in the bottom third of your oven and one in the upper third of your oven.

This is important....Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. 

Warm the Nutella through and then set aside while you make the meringue. I used the microwave for this, warming it for 1 minute 30 seconds on 50% power.  If you don't have a microwave you can accomplish the same thing by using a double boiler. 
Let the Nutella cool while you are mixing up the meringue.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, place the egg whites. Beat on medium-high speed until the whites are completely foamy. 
Add the cream of tartar and the salt and continue whipping at medium-high speed until when you lift the whisk attachment, soft peaks form. This should take a few minutes.

Once you have reached the soft peak stage, increase the speed to high and begin adding the sugar a few spoonfuls at a time (this should take a few minutes).  Once all the sugar is in, the meringue should be very thick (almost stiff) and when you left the whisk firm peaks should remain.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and drop in all the Nutella. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the Nutella into the meringue three or four times. You’re aiming for a swirled effect so don’t over mix. This will also help avoid deflating the meringue.

Using two spoons, drop the meringue onto the parchment-lined baking sheets in large dollops. Place in the oven for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, immediately lower the heat to 200 degrees F. and rotate the trays. Bake for an hour.

After an hour, check the meringues. If they are completely dried out then turn the oven off and leave the meringues in the oven for a few hours to cool with the oven. If the meringues still look a bit “wet”, then continue baking for another 20 minutes or so. Either way, once fully baked, turn off the oven and leave the meringues in there for a few hours.

When you remove the meringues from the oven they should be completely dry and cool and will sound hollow when you tap the bottoms.

The meringues will keep in an airtight container for a week, if they last that long!

......and that's What's Cooking at Cathy's ~ Enjoy!