Easy Italian Christmas Cookies with sweet glazed icing and festive holiday sprinkles. This classic sugar cookie bakes up soft and tastes just like traditional rolled Christmas sugar cookies our family bakes every year for Christmas.
Quick and easy, 10-ingredient Italian Christmas Cookies. These cookies will rival your classic sugar cookie recipe that’s been passed down from generation to generation. These cookies are soft, fluffy, and have a buttery-rich sugar cookie flavor.
It’s the start of the holiday season and now is the best time to make a list of Christmas cookies and desserts to make for family parties. Sweet treats like cookies, dessert bars, brownies, and holiday candy regularly make an appearance on our table.
In just a few days, it will be December. This time of year always goes by quickly with Christmas parties, gift exchanges, and holiday work parties. In between shopping and gift wrapping, I like to bake. I always start the season off on Thanksgiving Day where I start planning and baking cookies and fudge for the Christmas season. This season, I’m all about these Italian Christmas Sugar Cookies.
Perhaps the best part of making these easy sugar cookies is that the dough doesn’t need to be rolled out on a floured surface. During the holiday season, I don’t always have the counter space to do that and sometimes I like to pack up all the ingredients and head to a friends house where they don’t the room to roll out cookies. Well these cookies just need time to chill in the refrigerator and that’s totally okay with me while I enjoy a glass of wine with my friend.
I’m a huge cookie fan. Everyone that knows me, knows that I love to bake cookies. Baking cookies is therapeutic for me and it helps to relieve a lot of stress. Other times, I’m simply craving a sweet dessert and cookies are it for me.
It’s been a family tradition since I can remember to bake Christmas cookies throughout the holiday season. I always start with the classics like Strawberry Thumbprint Cookies, Pecan Snowballs, Peanut Butter Blossoms, and Crinkle Cookies, however, I like to try new recipes like these Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies. I’ll also adapt old favorites and introduce them during holiday cookie parties.
This year, I’ll be shipping my a variety of Christmas cookies off to family and friends. We love to do a holiday cookie exchange and these cookies always make the cut.
The secret to creating bakery style sugar cookies is to add vanilla and almond extract. Almond extract is used to give cake batter desserts their flavor and it makes these cookies a go-to Nonna approved Christmas cookie recipe this holiday season.
If you’re looking to add more flavor to these cookies, try experimenting with different extracts and citrus zest. Almond extract is my go-to flavor enhancer when flavoring cookies and cakes as it adds a “cake batter” flavor I remember and loved growing up.
More flavor ideas include peppermint, lemon, caramel, maple, and anise extract flavorings.
Italian Christmas Cookies are classic sugar cookies. The baking powder in the recipe allows the cookies to rise with heat and they stay set throughout cooling. One bite of this Christmas cookie recipe and it will quickly become a favorite. It will even make the Christmas cookie list year after year.
For more Christmas cookie recipes, visit my cookie page here.
Italian Christmas Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (1½ sticks)
- 1â…“ cup granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract (could also use lemon extract or zest/juice)
- 3¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 4 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
Glaze
- 2 cups powdered confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tbsp cold water
- 2 tsp almond extract
- Christmas sprinkles or jimmies
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
- In a bowl fit with a mixer, cream butter, and sugar on high until light and fluffy; about 5 minutes.
- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until incorporated. Beat in vanilla and almond extract.
- Slowly add dry ingredients into wet ingredients. Beat until incorporated.Â
- Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.Â
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease baking sheets or line with parchment paper.
- Dough will be sticky. Use a cookie scoop to scoop dough onto baking sheets or simply use a tablespoon to scoop dough. TIP: If scoop gets sticky, dip it into a bowl of powdered sugar between scoops. Space cookies 1 inch apart.Â
- Bake in oven for 13-15 minutes or until edges are slightly golden.
- Allow to cool. Transfer to a cooling rack. TIP: Pat the tops of the cookies after baking with a flat spatula to decrease the puffiness if desired. This makes it easier to frost and sprinkle.
- In a medium bowl, combine powdered sugar, water, and almond extract. Whisk until smooth.Â
- Use a spoon to add glaze to each cookie over a cookie rack. Top with sprinkles.
Nutrition
19 Comments
LiLDipper
12/23/2018 at 8:07 pmI had a feeling something wasn’t right when I got to adding 4 teaspoons of baking powder?? First thought: Biscuit. And that’s exactly what this turned out to be. A big puffed up biscuit. I’m sorry this is not a good recipe. The corn starch didn’t help. I tried to under bake, no help. Also your glaze is made with water instead of milk. After the first batch I knew this was all wrong. I wasted a lot of time on these during a busy day. (not to mention the ingredients) Terrible. I’m Italian, too, btw! This is not an Italian. A Biscuit maybe but not a cookie.
Jessica Knott
01/06/2019 at 10:20 pmI’m so sorry you didn’t like them!
Analida Braeger
12/27/2018 at 3:21 pmThese look so simple, but special all at once. I like the pop of color from the funfetti sprinkles and the combination of vanilla and almond accents. Thanks for sharing!
Anne Lawton
12/28/2018 at 2:42 pmThese cookies are beautiful and not just for the holidays! I would make these any time of the year.
lauren
12/28/2018 at 10:53 pmWhat a festive cookie for the holidays! These are so fun, I love the bright colors of the nonpariels. This will be a great cookie to make with the kids.
Sherri
12/29/2018 at 9:36 amI just love Italian cookies and these look and sound incredible! So pretty and perfect for the holiday season! Love how colorful they are! 🙂
David
12/29/2018 at 2:35 pmThese look delicious and colorful for the holidays! So the Italian Christmas cookies are just a bit thicker than typical sugar cookies?
Jessica Knott
01/10/2019 at 5:52 pmYes they are.
Tammy
12/30/2018 at 2:49 pmYour cookies are so pretty and festive! They look perfectly soft…wish I had one right now 😀
Kiki Johnson
12/30/2018 at 2:49 pmThese look just like my grannie’s sugar cookies! They look so fun – kids would love these ! Saved for next year’s Christmas season!
Leslie Haasch
12/30/2018 at 8:03 pmIf you ask me, these have exactly the right amount of sprinkles!
Nicole
12/31/2018 at 10:02 amYou know what I love about cookies with a bunch of sprinkles? That little crunch from when you bite them. These looks so pretty!
gorilla
09/14/2020 at 4:02 pmon your italian christmas cookies how do you get the to bake flat mine were dome sharp did you flatten before baking
Jessica Knott
09/18/2020 at 7:57 amGive the tops a gentle pat flat with a spatula once they are out of the oven and still warm.
Mahlah
12/02/2020 at 10:21 pmThese are lovely! Mine turned out a little taller and rounder then yours but they have a really nice light taste and texture to them. Thank you for sharing! I’m looking forward to sharing them with the family.
Jessica Knott
12/11/2020 at 3:20 pmGlad you enjoy them as much as I do! They are a keeper!
Ashlea
12/23/2021 at 11:02 pmThis cookie is simply delicious! I flattened them as you suggested, Not one complaint and I plan on making these cookies every Christmas. Thank you for sharing!
Becca
12/22/2022 at 10:03 pmI almost didn’t make these because of that biscuit comment below but I did, and I’m not upset! They turned out amazing!!! Not puffy or biscuity and the icing is amazing. They must’ve done something wrong. Thank you for this yummy recipe !!
Swankyrecipes
12/23/2022 at 11:56 amThanks, Becca. We really like them too. They do puff a little, but I typically pat them down with a flat spatula or the bottom of a cup to make a flat even surface for icing. Either way, they are really delicious.