When I was a child, I always wanted to celebrate Christmas and Chanukah. I loved the beautiful holiday lights on all the homes in my neighborhood. I would be invited by my friends, to help decorate their tree and went to midnight mass with them. I always kind of celebrated both holidays.
I still celebrate both holidays. Every year, I make Christmas dinner for all my friends and local family. My husband invites some of his work colleagues and we all gather to enjoy the holiday spirit. It is a chance to bring together people that mean the most to me. It focuses on being with the friends I love, and to let them know how important they are to me.
It is also a great excuse for my husband, to have a bourbon tasting with the guys. He is the bartender for the cocktail hour and he loves every minute of it. We really enjoy entertaining people at our home and making them feel welcome.
I know cookies are a very important part of Christmas, which is why I chose this recipe. Maybe you don’t need another, but just in case, I thought these cookies are really special. You probably have all the ingredients in your pantry anyway, and these are pretty easy to make. FYI – I substituted fresh lemon juice for the water when I made the icing. They come out soft on the inside and crisp on the outside. Topped off with a lemony-vanilla icing, this may soon become your go-to sugar cookie for Christmas.
This recipe is courtesy of CakesCottage and will make about 25 to 30 cookies that will make all your guests feel merry and bright.
Ingredients for Italian Christmas Cookies:
For the cookies:
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter (1/2 stick)
2 teaspoon vanilla
3 1/2 cup flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
For the icing:
2 cups sifted confectioners sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla
6 teaspoons water
To make the cookies:
In a bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder, set aside.
In the mixing bowl of a standing blender, cream together the butter and sugar.
Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well.
Mix in the vanilla.
Add in the flour mixture.
Take out of bowl, and knead until dough is firm and not sticky, adding more flour if necessary.
Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 365°F.
You could just roll the dough into 1-inch balls or you can do the following:
Cut off small amount of dough and roll on floured surface into 6-inch strips.
Take one end of cookie and turn it up.
Twirl the rest of the cookie dough around the tip.
Place on cookies sheets lined with parchment paper.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes (the bottom should be slightly browned, but the tops should remain light).
Remove cookies to wire rack and cool completely before glazing.
To make the icing:
Combine the icing ingredients in a bowl and mix until smooth. (you want it more thick than thin, but still runny).
Dip the tops of the cookies into the glaze, then return to the wire rack, allowing the glaze to drip down the sides of the cookie.
Top with sprinkles, while glaze is wet.
It’s that simple.
