12/12/2025
I am about to share with you my most treasured Christmas Cookie recipe. Italian Christmas Cookies!
(And don't forget to visit us this Saturday the 13th at the Michigan Makers LLC Events show in Novi.)
It took countless cookbooks, web searches, and years for me to find the variation that reminded me of the holidays. This cookie is what happiness tastes like!
My only modification to this cookie is that I also add a generous teaspoon (who I am kidding - at least 2 teaspoons) of vanilla extract (or paste, fresh vanilla bean, or powder) in addition to the almond extract for the cookie base. You could use it the glaze, just reduce the amount you add from the water. (I used about 6 Tablespoons of water.)
This year I am using my favorite, Indonesian, in the form of paste. The wonderful farm our Fair Trade Indonesian beans come from have a delicious buttery note no other beans I've tried - Indonesian or otherwise - can compare to.
In Italy, these cookies go by many names and can vary including in the type of extract used. A delicious alternative is Fiori di Sicilia - an aromatic blend of citrus, vanilla, and Italian flower blossoms.
Our version is called Fiori di Tipsy Beans. I combined grapefruit, orange, and lemon with a Vanilla Tahitensis. This species is known for the floral presence enveloping the vanilla.
I hope you love this cookie as much as I do.
Using a 1 Tablespoon/ #60 scoop this recipe made 42 cookies. These cookies should not brown and will be softer than you might expect, almost like a sweet biscuit. I only needed 1 dip in the glaze but make sure you add your sprinkles quickly or they won't stick.
Get the Italian Christmas Cookie Recipe from Gonna Want Seconds in the comments.
