Italian Cookies

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These pretty Italian Cookies are flavored with either almond or anise, dipped in sweet icing and decorated with rainbow sprinkles. They're perfect for your Christmas baking list or dress them with a variety of decorations to suit any occasion!

Prep Time20

Cook Time10

Cooling Time1

Total Time1 30

Course: Cookies, Dessert

Cuisine: Italian

Servings:

Calories: 122kcal

Author: Valerie Brunmeier

Ingredients

For the Cookies

½ cup vegetable shortening melted and cooled
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract or anise extract or to taste (*see note below)
3 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
3 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt

For the Icing

1 cup powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon almond extract or anise extract
2 to 3 tablespoons milk as needed
nonpareils or sprinkles for decorating

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the melted and cooled shortening in a large mixing bowl and add the sugar and extract of choice. Use an electric mixer to combine it well. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating in between each addition.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet mixture, beating to form a soft dough.
Using a small cookie scoop, shape the dough into neat 1 to 1 ½ tablespoon balls and place them about 1-inch apart on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes (check after 8 minutes - tops will crack but stay light colored, bottoms should be golden). Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Cool before icing and decorating.
For the icing, add the powdered sugar, extract, and 2 tablespoons milk to a small bowl and stir until combined. Stir in additional milk, ¼ teaspoon at a time, until icing reaches the desired consistency. It should be thin enough to easily pour off the spoon, but not watery.
Once cooled, dip the cookies, top down into the icing. Shake off the excess and place the cookies down on the wire rack. Sprinkle with nonpareils or sprinkles and let them rest at room temperature to allow the icing to set up.

Notes

Adding extract: As written, these are lightly almond or anise flavored cookies that are boosted with a little more extract in the icing. We think they are perfect, as written but for more intense flavor you can add an additional ½ teaspoon of extract to the cookie dough.

Chilling the dough: The cookie dough can be covered and refrigerated for up to one day before shaping and baking, if desired. Refrigerating the dough is not required for a good result so only do this if it is most convenient for you. Cookies made with chilled dough will take 2 to 3 minutes longer to bake.

Storing at room temperature: Baked and iced Italian Cookies store well in an airtight container at room temperature for 4 to 5 days.

Freezing dough: Scoop and form the dough as directed in the recipe and transfer the baking sheet to the freezer for about an hour, or until the balls of dough are frozen solid. Then, transfer them to a freezer-safe plastic storage bag and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw frozen dough completely in the refrigerator before baking.

Freezing baked cookies: Transfer the baked cookies without icing to an airtight freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw completely at room temperature and follow the recipe directions to ice and decorate.

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