Soft Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies (with Espresso Coffee)
If you love coffee, you’ll LOVE these Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies (Italian Amaretti Morbidi Cappuccino). Soft and chewy, they give an intense hit of espresso with every bite. Plus they’re naturally gluten free and dairy free.
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Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies – Little bites of espresso Coffee perfection
Welcoming my latest twist on this iconic Italian soft almond treat… Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies! Especially for the Espresso lovers amongst you, they punch a serious coffee hit. Known in Italy as Amaretti Morbidi Cappuccino, they’re little bites of continental joy, but as simple to make as they are delicious. With each bite, the crisp, crackly exterior surrenders to a soft, chewy, almost marzipan centre… The sweetened bitterness of espresso infused with almond perfection.
I declare a bit of an obsession with Amaretti cookies. I now have no less than 6 versions on the site, ranging from traditional almond and citrus options to chocolate… including a vegan chocolate recipe. There’s a full list (with recipe links) further down the post.
The flavours may be many and varied… But each one remains close to my Italian roots using a traditional base recipe and process for an authentic soft Amaretti texture. Always shared with my love 🤎.
Espresso Amaretti are naturally gluten free AND dairy free! But can I make them Vegan?
One thing I LOVE about these soft Coffee Amaretti Cookies is that they are naturally both gluten free AND dairy free. No ingredient subs, or reworks. Just pure Coeliac-safe yumminess.
They are primarily almond-based (as Italian tradition dictates), so not suitable for nut avoiders. However, with a replacement of aqua faba instead of egg white, they can easily be made Vegan. I suggest using about 10g less aquafaba than the egg white stated in the recipe… Then use exactly the same instructions from there.
Ingredients to make Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies
Coffee Amaretti are made with very few ingredients. However, depending on where you live, they may have different names. Here’s the low down on what you need to know…
Egg White
The recipe given in the post specifies the weight of egg white used. The reason for this is to help ensure consistency of batter thickness. Egg weight and size vary massively. And this makes a huge difference to the robustness of the amaretti dough as well as the eventual shape of the cookies.
As mentioned above, Cappuccino Amaretti can also be made vegan. To do this, make a straight switch from egg white to aqua faba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas), at around 10g less than the weight stated for each full batch.
Ground Almonds
In the UK, ground almonds are blanched and deskinned before being ground into a ‘meal’ (not a powder). In the US, the same product can be known as either almond meal or almond flour. The most important thing is that you use almonds without skins. Otherwise, your Coffee Amaretti Cookies will be gritty and unpleasant.
Sugar
The base dough of Amaretti Morbidi contains standard white caster sugar. In the US, this is known as super-fine sugar. However, I understand that US granulated sugar has a finer grind than that in the UK, so this may also be fine to use.
In addition to caster sugar, Amaretti are rolled and coated in icing sugar (also known as powdered or confectioner’s sugar). When baked, the cookies expand to give a cracked surface such that the white sugar coating appears crackled.
Espresso Powder is best for Cappuccino Amaretti
When making Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies, it is essential to use INSTANT espresso powder. Using an instant coffee powder (rather than liquid coffee) not only ensures the correct stiffness of the dough, but is produced to be edible without ‘brewing’.
If you prefer coffee on the less strong side, simply reduce the amount added to the mixture by a third or half. Or use a standard instant coffee powder (espresso is created to be intense!)
Liqueur or liquid coffee
There is also a small amount of additional liquid in the Amaretti dough in the form of either liqueur (coffee or almond) or strong liquid coffee. Any of these work fine.
Pro tips for making the best Coffee Amaretti
It is ESSENTIAL to use a clean bowl and equipment when whisking egg whites
Whether you use fresh egg white, egg white from a carton or vegan aqua faba, the bowl, whisk and mixing spoon MUST be COMPLETELY clean and free from any egg yolk or greasy smears. The slightest trace of fat and the egg won’t whip to stiff peaks. And if it doesn’t whip, your Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies will fall flat.
To ensure purity, wipe the inside of the bowl with a little lemon juice and hot water (using a clean sheet of kitchen paper). Then stand the whisk heads and spoon in a jug of boiling water with a drop of lemon juice for a few minutes, allowing them to air dry afterwards without being further handled with greasy hands.
This may sound a little pedantic. But you’ll thank me for it!
Tips for rolling, coating and baking Amaretti
The dough for your Coffee Amaretti is very sticky. So…
- Prepare the two sugar bowls (one for caster and one for icing sugar) BEFORE you start rolling.
- Before rolling, drop the scoop of dough into the caster sugar to partially coat before picking it up. This makes handling the dough less sticky and easier to roll.
- Wear food-safe gloves when rolling the dough into balls. They make it much easier to handle the dough. This is however optional!
- Roll and dip one ball at a time in each of the sugars and place it on the baking tray. Then start on the next ball.
- Check the baking cookies carefully. They shouldn’t brown. If baked too hot or for too long, they may become drier and less chewy.
Other Amaretti Cookie recipes at Gluten Free Alchemist
If you love the idea of soft and chewy Amaretti Cookies, but don’t like the flavour of coffee, there are plenty of other flavour options at Gluten Free Alchemist. All of them are divine!…
- Original soft Almond Amaretti Cookies
- Lemon Amaretti Cookies
- Orange Amaretti Cookies
- Chocolate Amaretti Cookies
- Vegan Chocolate Amaretti Cookies
We also have some similar Nutty Cookie Bites made with ground pistachio or hazelnut in place of almonds!
Ready to make soft Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies?
Thank you for reading all about my Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies. I hope you love them. The recipe is just below (scroll an extra inch or two). If you have any questions, feel free to contact me by comment at the bottom, social media message (Facebook; Instagram; Pinterest) or by email (kate@glutenfreealchemist.com).
And don’t forget to check out our massive Recipe Index too. It’s packed with inspiration for the best gluten free food.
Always shared for free with my love
Italian Soft Cappuccino Coffee Amaretti Cookies (gluten free; dairy free)
Key equipment
Ingredients
- 70 g egg whites (approx 2 large UK egg whites)
- 200 g ground almonds (blanched, skinned almond meal/US almond flour (not fine ground))
- 170 g caster sugar
- 3 tsp INSTANT espresso powder (for a less strong flavour reduce the coffee powder by a third to half)
- 20 ml/g coffee or almond liqueur or 1 tbsp strong coffee
To Coat
- 2½ tbsp caster sugar (superfine sugar)
- 2½ tbsp icing sugar (confectioners/powdered sugar)
Instructions
- Line a couple of baking trays with baking paper.
- Pre-heat the oven to 170 C/325 F/Gas 3.
- In a large very clean bowl, whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks. (Wipe the bowl with lemon juice, hot water and a clean sheet of kitchen towel before starting to remove any residual grease and take care not to get any egg yolk in the mix).
- Fold in the almonds, sugar and instant espresso powder.
- Gently stir through the liqueur/coffee. You should now have a very thick, sticky dough.
- Tip the caster sugar and icing sugar for coating the cookies into two, separate shallow bowls.
- Scoop out walnut-sized chunks of the dough using a teaspoon and roll into balls using your hands (the mix is very sticky, so food gloves may be helpful). It helps to drop the scoop of dough into the sugar to coat slightly before rolling.
- Dip and coat each ball as you make it in the caster sugar followed by the icing sugar and place on the baking tray, leaving a slight gap between them.
- Bake for 14 to 17 minutes until crisp on the outside, but still quite 'pale' in colour.
- Check the bake part-way through. If concerned that they may be browning, turn the oven down slightly.
- Leave to cool on the baking tray for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
© 2019-2026 Kate Dowse All Rights Reserved – Do not copy or re-publish this recipe or any part of this recipe on any other blog, on social media or in a publication without the express permission of Gluten Free Alchemist
Cappuccino Amaretti Cookies shared with
- What’s for Dinner with The Lazy Gastronome
- Full Plate Thursday with Miss Helen’s Country Cottage
- Fiesta Friday with Angie
loved the idea
Thank you x