Happy Passover! If you've been invited to a seder this year, you still have time to whip up a batch of these super easy (and delightful) Italian almond macaroons to bring with you. They're a nice change from the usual coconut macaroons that are often served at seders (not that I'm putting those down, they're good if you like coconut). Although I do prefer the lovely almond flavor and crunchiness of these little gems.

AMARETTI COOKIES

Yield: 4 ½ to 5 dozen

3 cups blanched slivered almonds (or 362 grams almond flour)

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 egg whites

1 teaspoon almond extract

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1.      Preheat oven to 300º F. Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2.      In a food processor, grind the slivered almonds into a fine meal (if using almond flour, simply place it in). Add the sugar and continue process for another 15 seconds. Add egg whites and almond extract, continue to process until a smooth dough forms around the blade.

3.      Roll the dough into balls (about 1 heaping teaspoon each). Place about 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.

4.      Bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Cookies should be golden. Allow cookies to cool completely on the paper before removing. Store in a dry place in an airtight container.

barely adapted from allrecipes.com (submitted by Kevin Ryan)

Bob's Red Mill almond flour

adding egg whites & almond extract to almond flour/sugar

dough

dough rolled into balls

baked

amaretti cookies

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Nectarine Almond Frangipane Tart

I'm just going to state the obvious...I burned the crust. I should have covered the edges with foil during the second half of baking, but I wasn't paying attention and it got away from me. Oh well. I hesitated for just a moment to share this with you, but then I realized how selfish it would be for me to rob you of that comforting feeling you get when you know you're not the only one who does stuff like this. And I already felt bad, so why shouldn't you feel good? You're welcome. Anyway, I guess it's a testimonial to this being a good tart, because in spite of the burnt crust, it was still delightful. And I can tell that the crust is delicious, because the unburnt part on the bottom was awesome (the lemon zest in there is a really nice touch).

NECTARINE ALMOND FRANGIPANE TART

Makes 8 servings

pastry dough:

1 cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest

2 large egg yolks

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons water

frangipane filling:

7 to 8 oz almond paste (not marzipan or almond filling)

1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened

3 tablespoons sugar

1/8 teaspoon almond extract

2 large eggs

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 lb firm-ripe nectarines

glaze:

1/3 cup peach preserves

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon Disaronno Amaretto (optional)

Special equipment: 11" x 8" rectangular (or 11" round) fluted tart pan with removable bottom

Make dough:

1.      Put oven rack in middle position and preheat to 375° F.

2.      Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor until combined. Add butter and zest and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Add yolks, vanilla, and water and pulse just until incorporated and dough begins to form large clumps.

3.      Turn dough out onto a work surface and divide into 4 portions. Smear each portion once with heel of your hand in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough together using scraper and form into a ball, then flatten into a rectangle.

4.      Put dough in tart pan and pat out with well-floured fingers into an even layer over bottom and up sides so it extends about 1/4 inch above rim. Chill 30 minutes.

5.      Lightly prick tart shell all over with a fork, then line with foil and fill with pie weights. Bake shell until golden around edge, about 15 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and bake until shell is golden all over, about 15 minutes more. Cool shell completely in pan on a rack. Leave oven on.

Make filling:

6.      Beat together almond paste, butter, sugar, and almond extract in a bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then mix in flour and salt.

7.      Halve nectarines, discarding pits, then cut into 1/4-inch-wide wedges.

8.      Spread frangipane filling evenly in tart shell. Stand nectarine wedges, skin sides down, decoratively in filling, being careful not to push too far into filling.

9.      Bake tart until frangipane is puffed and golden and edges of nectarines are golden brown, about 1 1/4 hours.

Make glaze:

10.  Heat preserves and water in a 1-quart saucepan over moderately high heat, stirring, until preserves are melted. Remove from heat and force through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl, discarding solids. Stir in Amaretto (if using).

11.  Brush top of hot tart generously with glaze and cool in pan on rack 15 minutes. Remove side of pan and cool tart completely, about 2 hours.

Gourmet, September 2006

flour, sugar, salt, butter and zest

adding yolks, vanilla and water

dough pulsed

dough in four parts and smeared

dough in pan

I used red lentils as pie weights.

blind baked crust (still looking good)

sugar, butter and almond paste

mixed; adding first egg

eggs already mixed in; adding flour and salt

almond cream

filling the tart crust with almond cream

nectarines

nectarines arranged stupidly

I recommend leaning all your nectarines in one direction,
instead of trying to face them all up. As you can see in the next
photo, they all fell over in different directions and ended up
looking pretty stupid. I guess it just wasn't my day in the kitchen.

baked tart

No, I'm not dyslexic (but if I was smart, I'd go with that).

glaze ingredients (before melting)

glazing tart

nectarine almond frangipane tart

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Chicken Tagine with Apricots and Almonds

First of all, I would like to point out that I don't own a tagine, so I just used a skillet (but renaming this recipe chicken skillet with apricots and almonds just didn't seem right). Side note: if you know me, that was not me dropping a hint that I want a tagine, so please don't get me one for my birthday. Don't get me wrong, they're lovely, but I'm not willing to carve out room for one of those bad boys in my cabinet. It will be regifted. Or maybe used as a planter. Hopefully I won't be faced with that decision. Anyway, tagine or no tagine, this recipe is delicious (so flavorful from the spices, plus a little sweet from the apricots with a nice crunch from the almonds).

CHICKEN TAGINE WITH APRICOTS AND ALMONDS

Makes 4 servings

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 (3 lb.) chicken, cut into 6 pieces, wings and backbone discarded

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 medium red onion, halved, then sliced ¼-inch thick

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 1/2 cups chicken stock (or water)

1 tablespoon mild honey

1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick

1/2 cup dried apricots, roughly chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley

1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted and cooled

1.      Stir together ground cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, paprika, turmeric, cumin, coriander, black pepper, cayenne, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large bowl. Add chicken and turn to coat well. Can make ahead and marinade overnight.

2.      Heat butter and remaining 1 tablespoon oil in base of a 10- to 12-inch tagine (or heavy skillet), uncovered, over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. Brown half the chicken, skin sides down, turning over once, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Brown remaining chicken in same manner, adding any spice mixture left in bowl.

3.      Remove some of the chicken fat from the tagine, leaving about 3 tablespoons. Add onion and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until soft, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the chicken stock, all the chicken, plus any juices accumulated on plate. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 30 minutes.

4.      While chicken cooks, bring honey, remaining 1 cup stock, cinnamon stick, and apricots to a boil in a 1- to 2-quart heavy saucepan, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until apricots are very tender (add more water if necessary). Once apricots are tender, simmer until liquid is reduced to a glaze, 15-20 minutes.

5.      Ten minutes before chicken is done, add apricot mixture and fresh herbs to tagine. Remove the cinnamon stick, then serve chicken sprinkled with almonds on top.

slightly adapted from Gourmet, May 2006 (originally adapted from Baija Lafridi)

spices

oil added

spices and oil mixed

chicken coated with spice/oil mixture

browning the chicken (although it already
looks pretty brown from the spices)

flipped

red onion

crushing garlic into the cooked onions

adding chicken stock

adding the chicken back

chicken added back

dried apricots

chopped apricots, cinnamon and honey

adding chicken stock

reduced down to a glaze

apricot mixture added to chicken

herbs added to chicken

I almost forgot to sprinkle on the almonds, but
remembered at the last minute (see photo at the top). They
add a nice crunch, along with almond flavor of course.

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Amaretto Chunk Cookies

I hope if you're a mother that you're reading this post bright and early in the morning. Because that means you still have time to guilt your family into whipping up a batch of these tasty cookies for you (while you catch up on the back log on your dvr, in between snacking on popcorn and napping). Or is that just my idea of the perfect Mother's Day? It's not as selfish as it sounds (I'll share the cookies with everyone after they bake them).

AMARETTO CHUNK COOKIES

Yield: 4 dozen

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon amaretto liqueur

2 teaspoons almond extract

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1 cup sliced almonds

1.      Preheat oven to 375º F.

2.      On waxed paper, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

3.      In large bowl, with mixer at medium speed, beat butter and sugars until creamy. Beat in eggs, amaretto, and extract. Reduce speed to low; beat in flour mixture just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips, coconut, and almonds.

4.      Drop dough by heaping tablespoons, 2 inches apart, on ungreased large cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden around edges. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool.

5.      Repeat with remaining dough. Store cookies in tightly covered container at room temperature up to 1 week or in freezer up to 3 months.

from Bread and Chocolate in St. Paul, MN (published in Good Housekeeping, Oct. 2005).

butter and sugars

creamed

eggs, amaretto and almond extract added

I really enjoyed the subtle amaretto/almond flavor in
these cookies. It's a great variation on the traditional
chocolate chip cookie.

mixed

dry ingredients added

mixed

almonds, coconut and chocolate added

dough all mixed

raw dough balls

baked cookies

These cookies are softer than most, so if you prefer
your cookies crunchy, you should bake them longer/darker.

amaretto chunk cookie

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