Author Notes
I always keep a bottle of orange blossom water in my fridge. Every once in a while, late in the night, when the house is asleep, I open it up and sniff it. It reminds me of of Sinbad the Sailor, Aladdin and Ali Baba and the magic of one thousand and one nights... —QueenSashy
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Ingredients
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5 ounces
pistachios, ground into fine meal
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6 ounces
butter
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4 ounces
granulated sugar
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12 ounces
all purpose flour
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1
large egg
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1
egg yolk
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2 tablespoons
lemon juice
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1 teaspoon
finely-grated lemon zest
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2-3 tablespoons
orange blossom water (I used Cortes)
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12 ounces
firm orange marmalade (I use Smucker’s Sweet Orange Marmelade)
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1
vanilla bean, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
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6 ounces
About confectioners sugar, for dusting
Directions
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A couple of days before making the cookies mix the confectioners sugar with the vanilla bean. Store the sugar in a dry place, in a jar with a tight lid.
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In a mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter with the granulated sugar until creamy. Beat in the egg, egg yolk, lemon zest, lemon juice and orange blossom water. Add the flour and pistachios and mix until a uniform dough forms. Shape the dough into a disk, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
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Preheat the oven to 325°F convection bake (350°F regular bake). Place the dough onto a work surface dusted with flour and roll it out to quarter inch thick round. Using a small round cookie cutter (mine is 1 1/4 inch) stamp out the cookies and arrange them on the baking sheets one inch apart. Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven before the edges start to turn golden. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for five minutes and then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
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Once the cookies have cooled, take a cookie round at a time, spread the marmalade on it and top with another cookie round.
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Pour the vanilla sugar into a small bowl. Roll each cookie-sandwich in the vanilla sugar until it is generously coated. Keep the cookies in an airtight container for at least one day before serving (this is really important so please do not cut corners).
Aleksandra aka QueenSashy is a scientist by day, and cook, photographer and doodler by night. When she is not writing code and formulas, she blogs about food, life and everything in between on her blog, Three Little Halves. Three Little Halves was nominated for 2015 James Beard Awards and the finalist for 2014 Saveur Best Food Blog Awards. Aleksandra lives in New York City with her other two halves, Miss Pain and Dr. V.
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