Lemon Pistachio Macaroons Recipes

PISTACHIO-LEMON BARS

Steps:

• To make crust, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper (if using foil, lightly butter it). Place flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse a few times. Add butter and process until well combined. Stir in chopped pistachios. Firmly press mixture into the bottom of the lined pan using the flat bottom of a glass or measuring cup (if it sticks, place a piece of parchment paper on the dough before pressing). Bake until lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, whisk together the filling ingredients. When the crust is baked, pour the filling into the pan and bake until set, about 20 minutes. Let cool completely. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and cut into 2-inch squares.

LEMON MACAROONS

Steps:

• These cookies are light and fun to make. They can be a great fall or winter addition to some chocolate treats.
• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. In a medium bowl, sift together the powdered sugar and almond flour.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the 5 egg whites for 1 minute to combine. Add the cream of tartar and continue beating the whites on high speed until soft peaks form, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the scraped vanilla bean seeds and continue beating until it is fully incorporated and the whites are glossy, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to gently fold in the lemon zest and the powdered sugar mixture.
• Coat 1 or 2 large baking sheets with a layer of parchment paper. Spray the paper with a thin layer of nonstick spray. Put heaping teaspoonfuls of the batter about 2-inches apart on the tray(s). Take care to leave the space between each mound because this batter spreads as it bakes.
• Put the tray in the center of the oven and bake for 8 minutes, then raise the temperature to 375 degrees F and bake until the cookies are golden brown around the edges and form a nice shell-like exterior, about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for a few minutes before gingerly removing them from the tray with an offset spatula. Take care! They can stick to the paper.

LEMONY COCONUT MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. In a bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until stiff peaks form. In a large bowl, beat milk and lemon juice on high speed until thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in lemon zest, baking powder and coconut. Fold in egg whites., Drop mixture by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake 15-18 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on pans 2 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool. Freeze option: Freeze cookies, layered between waxed paper, in freezer containers. To use, thaw before serving.

CREAMY LEMON PASTA WITH PISTACHIOS

Steps:

• Grate 2 1/2 teaspoons zest from lemons, then remove remaining zest in long strips with a vegetable peeler. Slice zest thinly (or remove zest with a channel zester); set aside. Squeeze 2 teaspoons of juice from 1 lemon (reserve rest of this lemon for another use).
• In a food processor, pulse bread into very coarse breadcrumbs (you should have 1 cup). Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add breadcrumbs and 1 teaspoon grated zest. Cook, stirring, until crumbs are golden and crisp, about 3 minutes. Remove from pan; let cool completely. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, yolks, cream, cheese, and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons grated zest.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 2 minutes less than package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta water; add pasta to bowl with cheese mixture. Season with a generous amount of pepper and some salt. Use tongs to toss until pasta is fully coated. Add remaining 4 tablespoons butter and lemon juice; toss until a creamy sauce forms. (If necessary, thin with a little pasta water, 1 tablespoon at a time.)
• Serve pasta sprinkled with breadcrumbs, pistachios, more cheese, chives, and julienned lemon zest.

PISTACHIO LEMON DROPS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Put egg white and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and mix on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Reduce speed to medium; mix in nuts and sugar, then flour and lemon juice.
• Using a 1 1/4-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.

PISTACHIO CHOCOLATE MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the pistachios in the container of a food processor, and pulse until finely ground.
• In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar and salt until they hold soft peaks. Gradually sprinkle in the sugar while continuing to whip until the peaks hold their shape, but are not too stiff. Gently fold in the pistachios, vanilla, and coconut. Scoop out 8 mounds onto the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until the tops are lightly browned. Allow to cool completely.
• When the cookies are cool, melt the chocolate in a glass bowl in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth. Dip half of each cookie in to the chocolate, or drizzle chocolate over the tops. Let the chocolate set before eating if you can wait!