For dinner at my boyfriend's house tonight, I really wanted to come with a dessert prepared. As the last name Catalano would imply, they're a family of Italians and my boyfriend's dad especially loves Italian cookies. I'm not really a big fan of them, probably because I always think of the bland, boring cookies that usually get labeled "Italian" and whenever I try one I always wonder WHERE the sweetness is. I know they're supposed to be subtle cookies but there's nothing wrong with adding a little something to satisfy the sweet tooth.
The recipe I used was from over at Bunny's Warm Oven and it changed my perception of GOOD Italian cookies in a second. The recipe is quick, easy, and makes a big batch. I packed up about half of the cookies to bring for dinner tonight and was still left with an entire two cookie sheets of these morsels.
Italian Cookies:
-1/2 c. butter
-1/4 c. shortening
-3/4 c. sugar
-4 eggs
-3 c. flour
-5 tsp. baking powder
-1/2 tsp. salt
-2 tsp. vanilla extract
Icing:
-2 c. powdered sugar
-3 tbsp. milk
Directions:
- Melt butter & shortening together; add sugar & mix well
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition
- Mix in vanilla extract
- In a seperate bowl, whisk or sift together flour, baking powder, & salt and add gradually to the creamed mixture
- Roll into small balls and place on ungreased cookie sheets (I added about 1/2 cup more flour because the dough was too sticky to handle)
- Bake at 375 degrees for 8 or 9 minutes; they should be browned slightly on the bottom but still light on top
- Remove to wire rack to cool before icing
Make the Icing:
- Mix milk one tablespoon at a time into the 2 cups of powdered sugar to make the glaze (keep it somewhat thick)
- Dip the top of each cookie into the icing (when completely cooled) and sprinkle with nonpareils
- Add them back to the wire rack until icing sets
*Putting a piece of wax paper underneath the wire rack assists in easier cleanup after icing the cookies!
