My Favorite Italian Cookie Recipes.......

These are the cream of the crop!

Enjoy!

CORAL ISLANDS

2/3 cup margarine
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 egg, separated
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted, approximately
Strawberry or raspberry preserves, about 1 cup
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, cream margarine and sugar with an electric mixer. Add egg yolk and extract and beat well. Add flour gradually and blend well. After you’ve used 1 1/3 cups flour, test to see if dough is pliable but not too sticky. Add more flour if needed.
Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Beat egg white so that it is still slightly runny. Put walnuts in a bowl nearby. Dip half of each ball into the egg white. Then dip into the nuts. Place on a cookie sheet, nut side up, and make a depression with your thumb just deep enough to hold a little less than 1/2 teaspoon of preserves. Fill depression with preserves. Bake 15-20 minutes.
Makes 3 dozen cookies.

　
BUTTERBALLS

1 cup margarine
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Pinch salt
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
2 3/4 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
Confectioners’ sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, cream margarine with an electric mixer. Add granulated sugar and salt and beat well. Add nuts and flour and work dough until all ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Roll dough into a ball, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 1/2 hours or until dough is firm. (Dough can be made several days ahead.)
Allow dough to come to room temperature. Form into balls slightly smaller than walnuts. If dough is too dry or stiff, squeeze it with your hand before forming the balls. Put balls on a baking sheet and bake 18 minutes. Gently remove to a rack to cool. When cool, roll in confectioners’ sugar.
Makes 40-50 cookies.
　
　
Italian Christmas Cookies
　
INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 carton (15 ounces) ricotta cheese
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

FROSTING:
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 to 4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 to 4 tablespoons milk
Colored sprinkles

DIRECTIONS
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a
time, beating well after each addition. Beat in ricotta and vanilla.
Combine flour, salt and baking soda; gradually add to creamed
mixture.
Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking
sheets. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.
Remove to wire racks to cool.
In a mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar and vanilla. Add enough
milk until frosting reaches spreading consistency. Frost cooled
cookies and immediately decorate with sprinkles. Store in the
refrigerator. Yield: 8-1/2 dozen.

Italian Anisette Cookies

"Old Italian recipe."
Original recipe yield:3 dozen
INGREDIENTS
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
6 tablespoons baking powder
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon anise extract
1 teaspoon anise extract
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons hot water
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
In large bowl, mix flour, baking powder and white sugar. Make a well in the center and add oil, milk, 1 tablespoon anise extract, and eggs. Mix together until dough is sticky.
Oil fingers and pinch off dough in 1 inch pieces. Roll into a ball and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet, 1 inch apart, flatten top slightly. Bake for 8 minutes. Dip cookies in Icing while warm.
To Make Icing: Blend in 1 teaspoon anise extract and enough hot water to 1 cup confectioner's sugar to form a smooth icing
This is my Italian grandmother's recipe, to a T (except for the baking power typo, of course - 3 teaspoons works perfectly :) We call them "Sciamellis" in my family. The key with these cookies is that YOU SHOULD NOT BROWN THEM. If they turn golden on top, they're overdone. When you just start to see a teeny bit of golden color at the base of the cookies, get them out of the oven! Almond, anise, vanilla, lemon...all varieties taste great.

Hugs & Prayers, GG