Notes
About oven temperature
While I’ve always baked these at 350°F (175°C) without any issues, I now have a different oven and I need to bake these at a lower temperature to avoid all of the cookies cracking. I now bake them at 320-330°F (160-165°C). If you’re unsure what to do, bake a test batch first by baking 6 cookie balls at 350°F for 8-10 minutes. You’re good to go, if they come out smooth. But if all come out cracked, with deep cracks, try a lower temperature for the rest of the cookies.
About food coloring
You don’t need a lot of food dye for these cookies. Mix water, rum, peach liquor or peach syrup or juice with 1-3 drops of coloring, depending on the brand and intensity. Dilute further with water.
You can also mix the coloring into a combination of water and different extracts (or flavorings), like strawberry or lemon or peach. All 3 fit this cookie well. (I’ve tried LorAnn oils which are extremely concentrated and a single drop already gives a lot of flavor.)
The food colors I most often use in all my recipes are from Rainbow Dust and Wilton. I hear people have great experiences with Americolor and McCormick too.
Keeping the shape
As you fill these cookies, make sure you put in enough filling – it needs to go slightly over the edge of the hole you made into the cookie. It’s better to add too much ricotta, than not enough.
Once you press the two halves together, some of the filling will come out. This is good as it is the glue that keeps the two cookies together and you just need to wipe away any filling that sticks out of the “peach”. Also know that while you are filling and coloring the cookies, the ricotta filling will get warm and consequently softer. This is why you need to chill these cookies before you serve them. The ricotta needs time to set.
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