These delicious chewy bite sized biskuttini tal-lewż are a popular traditional Maltese almond biscuit that never disappoint!
What are Biskuttini tal-Lewż?
If you ever visited Malta and either attended a wedding or a festive event, you will for sure have seen these biskuttini tal-lewż. A staple dessert in Malta, these biscuits are made from pure ground almonds, icing sugar, almond essence and egg whites! They are popular as you only need a handful of ingredients and only take minutes to be prepared. These chewy biskuttini tal-lewż can be also enjoyed during tea time with a warm cup of tea or coffee! Also, it’s worth to mention that they are gluten and dairy free!
How to make these almond biscuits
Even though, the ingredients are almost all the same, throughout the island there are several methods of how to make these biscuits. I make mine with the quickest method. In a large bowl, I add all the ingredients until everything is combined and I get a sticky paste. After that, I form the paste into balls and top them off with an almond by gently pressing it down. However, you can also find other methods, where the eggs are whipped before adding to the mixture and also recipes where the almond indent is done before adding the almond. All methods are good! I personally, vary the way I do them according to how much time I have on hand. However, the method I’m sharing here is the most straightforward, and the one I use the most to make them with my toddler son.
FAQs
How to store these biskuttini?
Any leftover biskuttini can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for not more than 3 days. Leaving them for longer, will make them hard to eat!
Can these be made with figolli leftovers?
Most definitely! Even though, my version for the figolli filling contains lemon zest, that added citrus taste won’t alter them that much. Actually some family recipes, already contain zest as part of these biskuttini recipe. Therefore, whenever you have any leftover figolli or għadam tal-mejtin, pop an almond on top and make these scrumptious biscuits!
Biskuttini tal-Lewż (Maltese Almond biscuits)
Ingredients
- 200 g ground almonds
- 200 g icing sugar
- 2 egg whites medium
- 1 tsp almond essence
- 24 whole almonds
- sweet rice paper optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C or 350°F. Line a baking tray with parchment paper or the edible sweet rice paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add the ground almonds, icing sugar, egg whites and almond essence. Mix well to get a sticky paste.
- Roll the paste into small balls. Place on the prepared sheet. Add an almond on top and slightly flatten the ball.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Allow to cool on a cooling rack.
If you have any questions, feedback or comments on this recipe, please leave a comment below. Please also rate this recipe by double clicking on the stars below. If you did make this recipe, tag @apronandwhisk and hashtag #apronandwhisk, as I’m curious to see what you create!
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What is causing my cookies to flatten out while baking?
Thanks for reaching out! I’m sorry to hear that!
From my experience while testing this recipe, it could be that the oven wasn’t at the right temperature or the oven used cooks quickly (unfortunately not all ovens cook the same even though it should be the same temperature). In such scenario, they either need less time to cook or else a lower temperature. Also, the size of the eggs! I use medium sized ones, so if you see that your ‘dough’ is still runny add more almonds for a sturdier one, more like a thick paste.
Hope that this will be helpful!