Italian Christmas Cookies – colorful sprinkles make these cookies look so pretty on any holiday tray! A creamy glaze makes them extra tasty!
Baking and handing out holiday treats is one of my favorite Christmas traditions. Chocolate Chip Cookie Sticks and Oreo Mint Chocolate Cookies are two of my favorites. They look festive, and are so tasty!
Before making these cookies, I had never tried an Italian cookie before. I know I’m in the minority, but I’m not a fan of sprinkles. (Don’t hate me.) They are so cute, but I don’t like biting into them. My kids, on the other hand, LOVE sprinkles, so they thought these cookies were the bomb!
Traditional Italian cookies are made with anise flavoring. But since everyone in my house detests black licorice, I opted to use almond extract instead. I made a couple cookies for myself without sprinkles, and I thought it was a perfect flavor!
With a soft, cake like texture, plenty of sweet glaze, and a spattering of colorful sprinkles, these cookies will disappear fast!
How to make Italian Christmas Cookies:
Ingredients needed:
- eggs
- oil (I used vegetable oil)
- sugar
- anise, almond, or vanilla extract
- all purpose flour
- baking powder
- salt
- powdered sugar
- cream or milk (any type of cream, I used half & half)
Whisk together the eggs, oil, sugar, and extract in a mixing bowl. Stir in the dry ingredients.
Scoop dough with a cookie scoop, then roll dough into balls.
Chill them for about an hour, or place them in the freezer for 15 minutes. They will settle a little bit because the dough is fairly soft.
Bake the cold cookie dough balls at 350° for about 9 minutes, or till the bottoms are lightly brown and the tops are set. Remove to wire racks to cool.
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.
Dip the tops of the cookies into the glaze, then quickly add sprinkles before the glaze sets up.
This recipe makes about 30 cookies, but it can easily be doubled.
PRO TIPS:
-For the prettiest cookies, don’t skip the chilling step. Chilling the dough helps the cookies keep their round shape. Without chilling, they tend to spread.
-To assure that the cookies are similar sized and bake evenly, I like to use a small cookie scoop. After scooping, I roll them into balls.
-Don’t over bake, or the cookies will be dry and crumbly. They are done when the tops are set, they will continue to cook a bit after you take them out of the oven.
While these cookies are perfect for Christmas, you can change up the colors of sprinkles to match any holiday or celebration.
How to store Italian Cookies
The cookies are best eaten within a day or two after they are glazed. After that the color from the sprinkles starts to bleed. Store them in airtight containers at room temperature. I like to put a piece of waxed paper between layers so the glaze and sprinkles stay intact.
If you want to make them ahead of time, you can freeze them without the glaze, and add it the day you serve them.
No matter what time of year you make these cookies, they are sure to be a hit!
FOR MORE CHRISTMAS RECIPES, CHECK OUT:
- Pistachio Sugar Cookie Bars
- Caramel Filled Bon Bon Cookies
- White Chocolate Molasses Cookies
- Cranberry Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Creamy White Christmas Punch
Italian Christmas Cookies
Italian Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 6 Tbsp oil
- ½ 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 Tbsp cream or milk warmed (more or less)
Instructions
- Whisk together eggs, oil, sugar, and extract in a mixing bowl. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt.
- 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.
- 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.
- For glaze, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk till smooth, adding enough warm cream to get a thin but creamy consistency.
- Dip tops of the cookies in the glaze, then top with sprinkles.
Nutrition
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
Just enter your email and get it sent right to your inbox! Plus you’ll get new recipes from me every week!
im making these right now and it’s very sticky i’m adding flour a little at a time i hope it doesn’t ruin the cookie
It shouldn’t ruin the cookies if you just add a bit more flour. But the dough will be quite sticky before you chill it.
I am making them tonight, my husband loves them plain. I do add a little extra Anise extract so the plain ones have more flavor for him. They are so easy to make..
Even easier if you can just eat them plain. And adding extra extract to compensate is a great idea!
Can you use 2% milk for the glaze?
Yes, that will work just fine!
I love these cookies, I make them a lot and I only use your recipe, the oil makes it so easy, since I always have it on hand. These are the best!
Yay, I’m so happy to hear that Doris! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment, I appreciate it! 🙂
Hi most recipes for this same cookie call for butter. Yours does not have any. Is this correct or was it omitted?
No butter, this recipe just calls for oil. 🙂
Lemon rxtract works well, too.
I’m a huge fan of anything lemon, so that sounds delicious!
Good morning!
Just wanted to let you know all of your recipes are gone on the bottom of your posts.
Yes, unfortunately I had an issue with the recipe plugin that caused an error a few days ago. Thankfully, everything appears to be up and running again.
My mom made a similar cookie that used warm milk in the dough.
Have you heard of this? I can’t find the recipe. Help.
Thanks
Jeff