Italian Nut Cookies/Dolci di Noci
2 room temperature egg whites
½ teaspoon of cream of tartar
pinch of salt
¾ cup white sugar
3 cups finely ground nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans, etc)
a few drops of both vanilla and almond extract (optional)
1 tablespoon corn starch
powdered sugar for the balls, about ¼ cup
Whip the the egg whites with the cream of tartar and salt until just starting to inflate, don't whip until stiff. Stir in the remaining ingredients (except powdered sugar) until well mixed and the egg whites are well incorporated. You can either bake now or chill for a while.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Take about 1 tablespoon of the dough and form into a ball. Roll the ball of dough in the powdered sugar and place on the cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until the sides are just lightly browned. Remove the parchment sheet to a rack to cool. Do not attempt to remove the cookies until completely cooled. Store in a tight container. This should make about 2 dozen cookies, according to how big you make the balls.
For the nuts, place whole or pieces of nuts in a food processor and process until it looks kinda like wet sand. Do not over process or you will end up with nut butter. You can also use premade nut flours, but the freshly ground ones will have a better flavor.
