Description
Traditional Italian Christmas Cookies are soft, tender, and lightly sweet treats that evoke festive warmth. These timeless cookies fill your kitchen with vanilla and almond aromas, making them perfect for gifting or holiday gatherings. Easy to make, the dough shapes into knots, twists, or circles and bakes quickly, then glazes to a glossy finish. They offer nostalgic Italian holiday flavor, delicate crumb, and a crowd-pleasing texture—yielding about 24 cookies.
Ingredients
Scale
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2–3 tbsp milk
- ½ tsp vanilla or almond extract
- Optional: festive sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, cream together butter and granulated sugar until smooth.
- Add eggs and vanilla extract, mixing until fully combined.
- Stir in baking powder, then gradually add flour to form a soft dough.
- Roll dough into small ropes and shape into knots, twists, or circles.
- Place cookies on the baking sheet, spacing slightly apart.
- Bake for 10–12 minutes until lightly golden on the bottom.
- Let cookies cool completely.
- Whisk glaze ingredients until smooth, then drizzle or dip cookies.
- Add sprinkles if desired and allow glaze to set before serving.
Notes
- Soften butter to room temperature for best creaming results.
- Do not overwork the dough to keep cookies tender.
- If dough is sticky, chill 15–20 minutes before shaping.
- Glaze sets best at room temperature; store cookies in an airtight container.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie (about 1/24th of recipe)
- Calories: 125
- Sugar: 14 g
- Sodium: 60 mg
- Fat: 5 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 15 mg
Keywords: Traditional Italian Christmas Cookies, Italian Christmas cookies, butter cookies, holiday cookies, knot cookies, glazed cookies, Italian baking, festive cookies, Christmas baking