Italian Wedding Cookies (Anginetti)
These traditional Italian cookies are served at many holidays and weddings in the old Italian neighborhood! They are very simple lightly sweetened cookies that are traditionally flavored with anise, almond, or lemon and then dipped in a sweet sugar glaze. Everyone will love them!
One of My Favorite Italian Cookies: Anginetti
Here’s a favorite, basic, Italian cookie – Anginetti (also referred to Ancinetti)! They go by a number of different names and in Italy they are made for weddings and holidays like Easter or Christmas. In the USA many people refer to them as Italian wedding cookies, Italian Christmas cookies, or Anise or anisette cookies (…but mine are almond flavored.) When they are formed into knots and flavored with lemon zest/extract, they are called lemon knot cookies.
These cookies are soooo good. They are soft, almost like a cross between a cake cookie and a traditional crispy cookie.
Growing up, it seemed that everyone’s mom or grandmother in the old neighborhood made a version of these cookies. Sometimes, when the baker would add too much flour, these cookies would taste quiet dry – but those were good for dunking in coffee!
Flavoring the Italian Cookies (Anginetti)
Traditionally, these cookies were flavored with lemon. But they are very commonly made with anise, almond, or even vanilla.
As a kid, I did not like anise-flavoring. My mom would make pizzelles the traditional way with anise as the flavoring and I’d always beg her to make them vanilla or lemon flavored instead. She eventually came around:)
But this is a very versatile recipe as far as flavorings go – feel free to substitute the almond or anise with vanilla, lemon, orange, or whatever flavoring appeals to you.
Decorating the Cookies
The traditional way to decorate these is to top them with a simple drizzle of sugar glaze and then add the rainbow non-pareils (or sprinkles), which are usually widely available at the grocery store.
Keeping Ball-Shape Cookies During Bake
When making this cookie, it’s important to refrigerate them for at least an hour in order for the cookie to bake in its characteristic tall shape. If you don’t refrigerate, they will come out flatter, more like a traditional drop cookie. Still good, but I love how they bake up if you refrigerate the dough.
I find it easiest to make the dough the day before and they bake it up the next day or so.
Notes on Dough Consistency
Please note that this dough is a little sticky. I know everyone’s definition of “a little” can vary but here is a photo of the mixed dough; hope this helps to visualize the finished dough.
Here you can see that I didn’t soften the butter too much for this particular batch:
Tips to Prevent the Sprinkles from Bleeding into the Icing:
To prevent bleeding of colors from sprinkles into the icing see the following suggestions:
- Omit the sprinkles
- Ensure cookies are cool before icing and sprinkling (since heat will cause icing and sprinkles to run)
- Don’t ice the cookies until the day you need them
- Make sure icing consistency is thick and not runny or thin
- Roll in confectionary (powdered) sugar instead of icing and sprinkles
- Make sure you use milk, not water to make the icing
- Use pastel colors, they don’t run/bleed as much
- Let the icing set a tiny bit before adding the sprinkles
- Avoid serving or frosting them on a humid day
Try Some Other Popular Cookies
📖 Recipe
Italian Wedding Cookies (anginetti)
Ingredients
For the cookie dough:
- 2 1/4 cups (281.25 g) flour (all purpose)
- 2 teaspoons (8 g) baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon (1.5 g) salt
- 3 (150 g) large eggs
- 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar
- 1/2 cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter , softened (DO NOT MELT THE BUTTER (8 tablespoons))
- 1.5 teaspoons (6 g) almond extract (or anise [licorice flavor])
To make the frosting:
- 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar
- 2 to 3 tablespoons (30 g) milk
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) almond extract (or anise extract)
To decorate
- 4 tbsp (40 g) non-pareils or sprinkles
Instructions
To make the cookie dough
- Mix the baking powder, salt, and flour in a small bowl and set aside
- Using a electric mixer, combine sugar and butter on medium speed for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy
- Add the eggs, one at a time, until combined and then add the extract and mix until combined.
- Add the flour/baking powder and combine slowly just until mixed.
- Using a tablespoon, roll the dough into balls and place onto a parchment lined baking sheet, about 1 inch apart.
- Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350F, and then bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
To Frost
- Mix the ingredients for the frosting, adding the milk one tablespoon at a time
- I prefer to use a teaspoon and pour a bit of frosting over the cooled cookies but some like to dunk their cookies in the frosting to frost
- Make sure that the cookies are completely cooled before frosting otherwise, the frosting will just drip off
- Add sprinkles/non-pareils while the frosting is still wet or they won’t stick. I usually frost a few at a time and then decorate so the frosting doesn’t dry before I have a chance to decorate
Marie, I just absolutely love this recipe. My Aunt always made them for Christmas and we called them Angelonies. I tried them before Christmas (made 2 batches) and gave them away as gifts. Everyone absolutely loved them! My Mom and BF couldn’t get enough of them so today I’m making 2 more batches. I of course used the Anise Extract but in the future may try Almond or Lemon. Thank you again for this wonderful recipe. They came out great and nice and high. I made dough the day before and 24 hour refrigeration did the trick.
We call these Tadals in my family (unfamiliar if this is the right spelling or pronunciation), always anise flavored, usually made on holidays. Our family is from Palermo, Sicily and Guardia, Calabria.
Our family did also Joe. I just made them this evening with lemon flavor. White frosting with pearl candies for someone getting married next week.
About how many dozen does this recipe make? I need to make 15 dozen
It makes 30 cookies so to make 180 cookies make 6 times the recipe
they are THE best cookies !!
Hi Marie! These taste amazing but mine didn’t form into the round balls like you show in the picture. They spread out a bit for me. Do you think it is the age of my baking soda?
Could be but also if you chill the dough you’ll get much less spreading
Makes sense! I chilled for an hour but I’ll wait for longer next time! Thank you!
I made the dough the day before and refrigerated it for 24 hours. It made them rise high and not lay flat.
These are soooo good. Delicious, especially if you love almond flavor as much as I do. Quick, easy and wonderful. I made them as a Italian Christmas Cookies.
You need to change the picture. This is a picture of Ricotta cookies but your recipe is for Italian Wedding Cookies. Wedding cookies are covered in Powdered sugar, Ricotta cookies have Ricotta in the recipes!! Both are awesome cookies you just need the picture/name to reflect the correct recipe!
Hi Suzanne, in Philadelphia we make Italian wedding cookies just as shown. I know there are a lot of variations and feel free to use powdered sugar on yours but this is how all the Italian women in my old neighborhood did them… i’m assuming you’re Italian American too? I’ve never seen the Italian wedding cookies with powdered sugar but I have seen Mexican wedding cookies that way and they look delicious!
I make these a lot. I add 1 tsp each of vanilla, almond and anise extract. To the icing I do 1/2 and 1/2 of almond and vanilla.
Her recipe is correct. They are Italian Wedding Cookies or Anisette Cookies, if you use the Anise Extract of course. The cookies you are speaking of I have made for 40 years and they are called “Mexican Wedding Cookies or “Snowballs” as my local area calls them. They are made with nuts inside and powdered sugar on the outside, hence the snowman reference. This recipe does not call for nuts or powdered sugar which are the two main ingredients in the other cookie.
Thank you so much for this excellent recipe , they come out just as perfect as you explained it & how I grew up having them when grandma was around.
I made these cookies, the dough was so sticky I couldn’t roll hem into balls. I did my best trying to shape them. I baked them & they came out very good. I don’t know what went wrong with the texture of the dough.i will make them again cause I really like them.
The dough can be sticky. I sometimes will wet my hands to roll them. My mom sprays her hands with cooking spray. After you refrigerate, the dough will become less sticky too. Glad you enjoyed! I should make a note in the recipe 🙂
You can also put a little flour on your hands.
can I add just a small amount of softened cream cheese to this recipe.?
I’ve never tried but I’d imagine it depends on what you mean by tiny amount. It’d probably be fine but might change the texture of the cookie and will probably need a bit more flour to compensate for the added moisture. If you’re up for experimenting why not?
I made these for the holiday and we LOVE them. I had a question regarding flour, I’m not able to get the butter, sugar and eggs to become light and fluffy. The butter never fully incorporates, it actually looked like a curdled mess the first time. The second time I creamed the butter and sugar then added the eggs, the butter still was clumpy but the cookies came out great so that’s how I do it now. I was wondering if I could use almond flour, even half and half, we love almond and use almond extract in lieu of anise and think the almond flour might add that nice nutty taste. I know almond flour typically needs more binding agent /egg and was wondering if I would need to add more egg.
I’ve never tried almond flour so I could not say definitively …i would say to try without extra egg and see if the dough seems too dry.
I tried with 1 cup almond flour and no extra egg and the only difference was they were lighter, still delicious!!
I wonder if I could color half of the dough with a bit of red food coloring, then chill the 2 halves, and make candy cane shapes by twisting 6 inch rolled out pieces of the 2 colors, then baking….???? (Obviously omitting frosting and garnishing with sprinkles.)
My favorite Christmas goody was the almond flavored candy cane cookies my mother would make every year. I have been unable to find a recipe for these cookies, and I am DYING to make these for my own children to carry on this SWEET Christmas tradition. If anyone knows if my idea would work, please Lmk. Or of course, better yet, if you know the cookie I am describing, and have the ACTUAL RECIPE, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE share it with me. Time is running out for this year. 🙁
The candy cane cookies are in the old Betty Crocker Cookie Book. I think the dough seem quite similar. I can’t rate this recipe yet because I haven’t baked them. The raw dough was tasty though I think I over mixed it.
so based on what Ali just said, maybe try this Betty Crocker recipe this year? Substitute almond flavoring for peppermint…
Is this hard to make without an electric mixer? How long would it take to get the mixture light and fluffy by hand?
I’ve never tried this but I’m sure you can with a big wire whisk…
These are such pretty Christmas cookies and so, so delicious! I especially like them with my morning coffee. I did not dip the cookies in the glaze…. Too messy. Instead, I drizzled a teaspoon of glaze over 3 or 4 cookies and while the glaze was still wet, sprinkled with red and green Jimmies. Only glaze 3 or 4 at a time so you can add sprinkles before the glaze sets.
I wonder if it would work adding tiny bits of maraschino cherries?
My dough is sticky just waiting to take them out of the oven