Italian Cookies – these soft round cookies are dipped in creamy glaze, then topped with colorful sprinkles. A fun cookie for any occasion, and especially for holidays.
Italian Cookies aka Italian Wedding Cookies
Have you ever tried Italian Wedding Cookies before? Italian cookies are traditionally flavored with anise, but no one in my family likes the taste of black licorice, so I used almond instead, which is a common substitute for a more Americanized Italian cookie version. If you don’t like anise or almond, you can also just use vanilla.
We love that these cookies aren’t only simple, but they are tasty and pretty! They’re great to serve for parties or even holiday functions. And who can deny a cookie covered in glaze and sprinkles?
How to make Italian Cookies:
Whisk together the eggs, oil, sugar, and extract in a mixing bowl. Stir in the dry ingredients.
Roll dough into balls. I like to use a small cookie scoop to make sure the cookies are all the same size. After rolling them into balls, chill them for about an hour, or place them in the freezer for 15 minutes. Chilling the dough helps the cookies keep their round shape. Without chilling, they tend to spread.
Bake the cold cookie dough balls at 350° for about 9 minutes, or till the bottoms are lightly brown and the tops are set.
After the cookies are completely cooled, whip up a simple glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, extract of your choice, and warmed milk or cream. I just heated my cream in a glass measuring cup in the microwave.
This recipe makes about 30 cookies, but it can easily be doubled. The cookies are best eaten within a day or two after they are glazed. After that the color from the sprinkles starts to bleed.
Can you make the cookies ahead of time? Yes, you can freeze them without the glaze, and add it the day you serve them. Just let them thaw completely before glazing.
How to store Italian Cookies? Keep an air tight container at room temp for up to a week.
Do you have to use anise, if you don’t like licorice flavoring? Of course not. We prefer almond extract and used that for these cookies, but can you also use vanilla too. 😉
Italian Christmas Cookies
We sure do love these cookies, and especially love that you can change up the colors of sprinkles to match any holiday or celebration.
Since Christmas is just around the corner, I sprinkled a few of my cookies with green and red nonpareils. Wouldn’t they be beautiful on a tray of Christmas cookies?
If you don’t like the crunch that comes with nonpareils, you can also use jimmies (softer and longer sprinkles) too.
For more Christmas cookie recipes, check out:
- Chocolate Drizzled Christmas Cookie Sticks
- White Chocolate Dipped Gingersnaps
- Crazy Christmas Cookies
- Snowball Cookies
- Gingerbread Cookies
Italian Cookies Recipe
Italian Cookies - these soft round cookies are dipped in creamy glaze, then topped with colorful sprinkles. A fun cookie for any occasion, and especially for holidays.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 6 Tbsp oil
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tsp almond anise, or vanilla extract
- 2 cups flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
Glaze
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp almond anise, or vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
- 3-4 Tbsp cream or milk, warmed
Instructions
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Whisk together eggs, oil, sugar, and extract in a mixing bowl. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt.
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Roll dough by tablespoonfuls into balls. Chill balls of dough for at least an hour, or freeze for 15-20 minutes. Place cold dough balls on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
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Bake at 350° for about 9 minutes, or till tops are set. Bottoms will be lightly browned, but tops should still be white. Remove cookies to cooling racks and cool completely.
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For glaze, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk till smooth, adding enough warm cream to get a thin but creamy consistency.
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Dip tops of the cookies in the glaze, then top with sprinkles.
I prefer this version with the almond instead as well!