Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Add the almonds to the bowl of a food processor and process for about 90 seconds. You don’t want the almonds to be too finely ground. Remove to a mixing bowl.
Add the sugar, egg white, zest and vanilla and mix until all the ingredients are fully absorbed and the mixture resembles a paste.
Divide the paste in half and transfer one half to a separate bowl.
Add green and red food coloring to each half until the desired color is reached.
Take a piece of red almond paste about the size of a rounded tablespoon and roll into balls. Roll each one in granulated sugar and place them on the baking sheet. Top with a red candied cherry half.
Take a piece of green almond paste about the size of a tablespoon and roll into a ball, then roll the ball between your two hands to elongate it into a rectangle. Roll each one in granulated sugar and place it on the baking sheet. Top with a green candied cherry half.
Bake for 10-13 minutes or until the bottoms are slightly browned. The cookies may feel a bit soft out of the oven, but they will firm up as they cool.