The Best Recipe for Italian Anise Cookies (2024)

Italian Anise Cookies

Italian Anisette

Anise Cookies

The most delicious, authentic Italian Anise Cookies recipe you will find. These cookies are perfect any time of the year! I know they are traditional served around the holidays but we make them all the time!

For the cookies:

½ cup unsalted butter, softened

½ cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs, room temperature

1 tsp anise extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

3 tsp baking powder

For the icing-

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tbsp milk

3-4 tbsp nonpareils sprinkles

Instructions

Begin by creaming together butter and sugar.

Slowly add eggs and anise. Mix until fully combined.

Next, add flour and baking powder and mix until a cookie dough forms.

Wrap cookie dough in plastic and chill for one hour.

Once time is up, remove cookie dough from refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Roll cookie dough into spheres, about 1-inch in diameter. Space cookies at least 2 inches apart from each other (you may have to bake in batches).

Bake for about 8-10 minutes, until bottoms are lightly browned.

Allow for the cookies to cool down.

In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and milk.

Dip the top of each cooled cookie into the powdered sugar and milk mixture. Sprinkle with nonpareils sprinkles.

Serve and enjoy!

How to Bake in Batches to Make the Most of Your Baking Time

One way to handle your holiday baking is to bake in batches, then freeze and store for the big day. You can do this successfully over a couple of weeks with batch baking and batch preparing.

The biggest thing to remember is to only try a few different types of things in one day, or focus on just one type of baked good in one day. For example, you might want to bake all your quick breads in one day. Another day you can prepare all your cookie dough. Yet another time, you can bake all your fruit pies and so forth. This process makes the most of the time you have, the space you have, and your skill level.

Be Prepared

Don’t try batch baking without a plan of action. Be sure to write down your plans in advance so that you are sure you have enough time to do everything that you’ve planned. To figure out a basic time line, add up the prep time, the baking time for each oven full, and then multiply that by 1.5 to account for a little extra issues happening. Then you should be sure that you have enough time.

Get Everything Ready to Go

Your kitchen should be spotless when you start, and ensure that you have all the ingredients and appliances necessary to make each item ready to go. If you know, for example, that today you’ll be using about 10 pounds of flour, consider using a large bowl to hold the flour so you can easily spoon the flour into the measuring cup, flatten off over the bowl, without having to get into the bag over and over which usually means spillage.

Clean as You Go

Fill your sink immediately with hot soapy water so you can clean as you go. You will want to wash your mixing dishes and other utensils during the baking process so that you can use them again. There’s no point in totally destroying your kitchen as you batch bake, and you don’t have to. Set out a draining board, fill the sink with hot soapy water, and wash as you go. There are many opportunities during baking to wash a couple of dishes, and this will make the clean-up faster, and the process more organized.

All Day Batch Baking

You can set aside a day for batch baking such as a Saturday. Plan for all day baking, which usually entails 8 to 10 hours of work. Ensure that any other chores are done, including the shopping, and the kitchen is clean and ready prior to baking day. It’s important to organize your recipes with some logic behind them. For example, if you need dough to rise, start that first, so that it can be rising as you are preparing other things such as cookie dough or pie crusts. Both can be put in the refrigerator or freezer after preparation while you bake the bread, then baked after you bake the bread while the oven is still hot and ready.

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The Best Recipe for Italian Anise Cookies (2024)

FAQs

What is the most popular Italian cookie? ›

Most Popular Italian Cookies
  • Amaretti. These lovely almond-flavoured biscotti were supposedly first made during the Middle Ages. ...
  • Ricciarelli. ...
  • Baci di dama. ...
  • Chocolate-Pistachio Biscotti. ...
  • Savoiardi. ...
  • Canestrelli. ...
  • Biscotti al Cocco. ...
  • Pizzelle.
Oct 22, 2020

What is the best selling cookie in Italy? ›

Italian Brand Cookies: The Best-Selling by Bell Italia Abroad
  • Authentic Italian Flavors: Pan Di Stelle Cookie Brand. ...
  • Italian Elegance: Di Leo Cookie Brand. ...
  • Galbusera: A Leading Tale in the World of Cookie Brands. ...
  • Balocco: A Sweet Success Story Among Top Cookie Brands. ...
  • Doria's Cookie Brands: The Bucaneve and Atene Selections.
Jan 6, 2024

Why do my Italian cookies crack? ›

You will notice that the cookies crack slightly while baking. This is normal and as long as you don't overbake them, the cracks will settle and get smaller as they cool. The reason they crack is that the outsides set before they have finished rising, but this is also what helps give this cookie its great texture.

What is the number one cookie in the world? ›

Oreo is the best-selling cookie in the world. It is now sold in over 100 countries. Oreo was first produced in 1912 by the National Biscuit Company, now known as Na-Bis-Co.

What flour do Italians use for cookies? ›

For cookies, bars, cakes/cupcakes, biscuits, scones, or anything that needs a tender crumb, use Farina di grano tenero, 00. This is your “cake flour.” Nobody wants a chewy cake. For bread, I recommend starting off with Farina di Manitoba, grano tenero, 0; this is similar to standard American bread flour.

What is the number one dessert in Italy? ›

1. Tiramisu. This iconic sweet treat is easy to make at home with our simple recipe. Make it ahead of time to allow the flavours to mingle and intensify while you're munching on a crunchy bruschetta starter.

What cookie originated in Italy? ›

Biscotti, also known as cantuccini or mandelbrot (Mandel bread), are traditional Italian cookies with a long history and rich cultural significance.

What is the most sold item in Italy? ›

Among Italian consumers the two most popular categories for online purchases are Clothing and Shoes. 41 percent and 34 percent of consumers respectively chose these answers in our representative online survey. The survey was conducted online among 2,038 respondents in Italy, in 2024.

What flavor is anise? ›

They have a sweet, fragrant aroma with a strong, licorice-like taste. It's that strong flavor that makes anise a love-it-or-hate-it kind of spice. If you've ever tasted alcoholic beverages that contain ouzo, sambuca or pastis, you know what I mean!

What can I substitute for anise in cookies? ›

If you are all out of anise extract, you can substitute for it with the following: Use 1 teaspoon of licorice flavoring/extract for 1 teaspoon of anise extract.

What is the difference between anise and anisette? ›

Anise is always the main ingredient, and the liqueur also must meet minimum sugar (350 g/L), alcohol (38% abv) and anethole (anise aroma) content requirements. By comparison, anisette (sometimes seen as anisetta), is also an anise distillate, but it can be made with other ingredients in addition to anise.

Is anise good for you? ›

Eating foods rich in iron, like anise seed, can keep your blood healthy and reduce your risk of iron deficiency anemia. Several studies have shown that anise seed can reduce the symptoms of clinical depression. In mice, anise relieved symptoms of depression as effectively as two commonly used antidepressants.

What is anise flavor in baking? ›

Anise seeds lend a licorice flavor to baked goods and more. This spice is widely used in Middle Eastern, Italian, German, Indian, and Mexican cooking.

What are the top 5 favorite cookies? ›

Some of the most popular cookie flavors include:
  • Chocolate chip.
  • Peanut butter.
  • Peanut butter blossoms.
  • Double chocolate chip.
  • Snickerdoodle.
  • Sugar.
  • Shortbread.
  • Pumpkin.

What cookies are in an Italian cookie tray? ›

Our Classic Italian assortment is a great way to sample of our traditional sweets. This tray includes Cranberry Almond Biscotti, Amaretto Biscotti with Almonds, Chocolate Almond Macaroons and Pignoli Cookies.

What is Italy cookie choices? ›

Italy Cookie Choices allows you to easily comply with the european cookie law (and Italian too), showing a notice to the user only the very first time he visits your website. Message, position and the style can be easily modified through the plugin menu.

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