Amaretti Cookies With Pandan and Pistachios

RECIPE: Excerpted from 108 Asian Cookies: Not-Too-Sweet Treats from a Third-Culture Kitchen by Kat Lieu. Copyright © 2025 by Kathleen Lieu. Photographs by Charity Burggraaf. Used with permission from Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company.

Photo: Charity Burggraaf

November 05, 2025

An Asian-flecked twist on a traditional Italian cookie.

Brighten up tea time or the holiday table with these verdant cookies. For her book, 108 Asian Cookies: Not-Too-Sweet Treats from a Third-Culture Kitchen, Kat Lieu created an Asian-flecked twist on the traditional Italian amaretti cookies. By adding pandan and pistachios, two of Lieu’s favorite flavors, and decorating them to resemble a sugar-dusted Chinese almond cookie, they make for a festive treat.

Ingredients

Yield:18

For the cookies
2 1/4 cups almond flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 large egg whites
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1 1/2 tsp. green pandan extract
1 tsp. almond extract
1 Tbsp. red miso (gluten-free if that is a concern)
1/3 cup pistachios, chopped finely
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For coating and topping the cookies
1/3 cup granulated sugar, in a shallow bowl or plate
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, in a shallow bowl or plate, plus more as needed to dust the cookies
18 whole, roasted almonds
Culinary-grade matcha

Tools:2 baking sheets, whisk, medium bowl, stand mixer with whisk attachment

Preparation

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Adjust two racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Make the CookiesWhisk the almond flour and granulated sugar together in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar on high speed until frothy. Add the pandan and almond extracts and whip on high speed until stiff peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes.

Transfer the almond flour mixture to the bowl of the stand mixer, along with the miso and chopped pistachios. Mix on low speed until a thick and cohesive dough forms. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

Scoop about 2 tablespoons of the dough and roll into a ball. Toss in the granulated sugar, then repeat with the confectioners’ sugar to coat thoroughly. Repeat to make 18 balls, spacing them at least 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Press each dough ball with the bottom of a sugar-coated glass or measuring cup until the cookie edges begin to crack, about 1/2 inch in thickness. Alternatively, skip the flattening step and keep the balls of dough rounded. Press a whole almond into the enter of each dough ball.

Bake all the cookies, switching the sheets between top and bottom racks and rotating front to back once halfway through, until lightly browned around the edges and cracked, about 25 minutes.

Let the cookies set and cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust the tops with a little more confectioners’ sugar, then some matcha.