11.27.2015

Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, the Christmas season can begin! My favorite way to kick off the Christmas countdown is by baking cookies (of course)! Many of my most treasured childhood memories involve my grandma and I spending the day in the kitchen making a gigantic mess as we attempt to make every possible kind of cookie. The recipe this week is dedicated to my two all time favorite Italian Christmas cookies. I have to thank my grandma for the wonderful recipes and cooking expertise.

The first recipe is for Italian Anise cookies. What you’ll need is:

6 cups of flour

2 cups of Crisco

2 1/3 cups of sugar

5 teaspoons baking powder

6 eggs

2 tablespoons anise extract

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract (optional)

What’s nice about the anise cookie recipe is that no modifications are required to eliminate dairy. To make the cookies gluten-free, I used a combination of Bob’s Red Mill Buscuit and Baking Mix, Bob’s White Sorghum Flour, and fresh ground almond flour. To have a total of 6 cups of flour, I mixed 3 cups of almond flour, 1 cup of sorghum flour, and 2 cups of the biscuit mix.

For the batter, mix all the dry ingredients before adding the eggs and Crisco. With an electric mixer, beat the batter until well combined and smooth.

Add the anise, vanilla, and lemon extract. In case you’ve never experienced anise flavor before, be aware. Anise has a very strong and powerful taste that many people describe as licorice flavored. I personally enjoy the strong and bold flavors, but sometimes the licorice taste can be overpowering if too much is added. For your first anise trial, I recommend adding the extract slowing and frequently tasting. You can always add more later!

The batter should be thick and able to stick together easily. I like to chill the batter in the refrigerator for about an hour before cooking to firm up the dough.



Roll the dough into 1-2 inch balls and line evenly on greased cookie sheets. Keep rolling the dough until the surface is smooth and shiny (this may take a while, sorry). The dough cracks easily while cooking and the thorough rolling prevents the cookies from crumbling.

Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. The final cookies should be rounded on the top and slightly hard.

The second recipe is for Italian chocolate cookies. What you’ll need is:

4 cups of flour

1 1/4 cups of sugar

1/4 cup of chilled coffee

1 orange (rind and juice)

3 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoons nutmeg

3/4 cup of cocoa powder

1 tablespoon vanilla

6 eggs

1/2 cup of vegan butter

For the flour mixture, I used 1 1/2 cups of Pillsbury multiple purpose gluten-free flour, 1/2 cup of sorghum flour, and 1 cup of Buscuit mix.

Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves in a small bowl. Add the eggs, softened vegan butter, and sugar into a separate bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy. Shred the rind off a medium sized navel orange and sneeze the juice into the egg mixture. The orange juice and rind provide a refreshing and subtle background that ties all the delicious flavors together.



Add the chilled coffee and vanilla. When I first discovered that brewed coffee is an ingredient, I was surprised. Why coffee you ask? Well I believe the coffee adds a slightly bitter flavor that counteracts the abundance of sweetness. But, the true meaning behind my grandma’s cooking secrets will never be revealed.

Mix until well combined. Slowly sift in the dry ingredients while on a slow mixing setting. The batter should quickly thinken and remain relatively sticky. Chill the batter for an hour in the refrigerator. Before rolling the dough, cover your hands in flour to prevent a doughy sticky mess. Roll the dough into 1-2 inch balls until smooth. Bake at 350 degrees for 18 minutes. With the gluten-free flour, the cookies will turn out slightly dense and almost brownie-like (who doesn’t love brownies and cookies!?).

For frosting, I combine powdered sugar and almond milk until a smooth paste is made. For the white anise cookies, I like to add a little Christmas spirit by making green, red, and white frosting. If you become an anise lover like me, I recommend adding a pinch (yes, only a pinch) of the extract to the frosting mixture. Once the cookies are cool, dip them individually into an icing color of your choice. Hold the cookies upside down until the icing has finished dripping. Cover with colorful sprinkles for extra decoration!



Fill your stomach, cookie jar, and heart with these traditional and decadent Italian cookies! If you choose to share with friends (which I highly recommend!), all the cookies will soon disappear and they will always be begging for more! Enjoy your friends, family, and allergen free diet this holiday season!

For some extra cuteness, here is our family dog (or reindeer) Lucky embracing the holiday spirit!