FIGOLLI'S MALTESE EASTER COOKIES

I choose this receipe because my gandmother baked this for us every year for easter. It's a almond biscuit with a lemon flavor. She used to make them with a doll pattern and an egg for face or the belly and my brother always got the fish pattern with egg for the body. This receipe is all my childhood and I didn't know it was from Malta andmy grandmother's country before I making research for this topic.

Easter Recipes: Figolli

Ingredients - Pastry

480 grams (or 1 lb and 0.93 oz) flour

120 grams (or 4.23 oz) sugar

300 grams (or 10.58 oz) margarine

2 eggs

Grated orange zest

Ingredients - Filling

200 grams (or 7.05 oz) ground almonds

150 grams (or 5.29 oz) sugar

Icing sugar

2 egg whites

Easter eggs

Water

Method

Start out with the pastry. Rub the flour and margarine to a sandy texture. Then mix the eggs, sugar and orange zest. Add these to the flour and make a dough. It is important to leave it to set for about an hour before using it.

Now for the filling. Put the sugar in a deep pan and cover it with water. Bring to the boil. Add the almonds and mix well. Leave the mixture to set.

Roll out the pastry. Use fancy shape cutters and cut the pastry into different shapes. You have to cut 2 pieces of each shape. Put the first piece of the pastry on a baking sheet, and spread some of the almond mixture in the centre. Wet the edges with water, and put the other piece of the pastry on top of it. Press the edges firmly to seal. You will now have the figolli ready for baking.

Bake them in a moderate oven for some 30 minutes. Allow the figolli to cool.

When you see that they have cooled down from the oven prepare the royal icing. Decorate the figolla to your liking when it has cooled down. Put the Easter egg in the centre.