Sour Cherry and Marzipan Christmas Cookies is a traditional American recipe for a classic cookie made with ground almonds, marzipan, flour, butter and sugar that's flavoured with sour cherries. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic American version of: Sour Cherry and Marzipan Christmas Cookies.
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Ingredients:
110g ground almonds
110g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
150g yellow marzipan, cut into small dice (about 5mm per side)
225g butter
225g caster sugar
1 egg white
1/2 tsp almond extract
80g dried sour cherries
Method:
Combine the ground almonds, flour and baking powder in a large bowl then mix in the marzipan. Carefully fold the ingredients together so that the marzipan dice are coated with the dry ingredients.
In a separate bowl cream together the butter an sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the egg white and almond extract, beating thoroughly to combine. Now add the flour and marzipan mix and use a wooden spoon to combine thoroughly before stirring in the cherries.
Don't worry if the mixture looks far to dry. As long as you keep stirring the mixture will come together as a smooth batter (this is due to the oils in the ground almonds). Now use your hands to bring the dough together as a ball then cover in clingfilm (plastic wrap) and set aside to chill in the refrigerator over night.
The following day, when you are ready to bake remove the dough from the refrigerator and pinch off small amounts. Roll into balls about 3cm in diameter, ensuring that each ball has at least 2 cherries in it. Arrange these balls on baking trays lined with greaseproof (waxed) paper, ensuring you leave a gap of at least 6cm between them. When done, transfer to an oven pre-heated to 180°C and bake for about 25 minutes, or until the cookies are turning a golden brown.
Remove from the oven at this point and allow to cool on the baking trays until the cookies begin to firm up (about 5 minutes). Use a spatula to remove from the greaseproof paper then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an air-tight tin.
