Aunt Elaines Italian Anise Cookies Food

ITALIAN COOKIES WITH ANISE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Beat butter and sugar for dough together in a bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs, vanilla extract, and anise extract and blend. Combine flour and baking powder in a separate bowl; stir into butter mixture until blended.
• Take a ping pong-sized ball of dough and roll between your hands to form a rope. Connect the ends and twist into a figure 8 shape. Place on an ungreased baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.
• Bake in batches in the preheated oven until edges are golden, about 10 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Mix milk into confectioners' sugar for icing, stirring slowly. Add the anise extract and vanilla extract.
• Dip cooled cookies into the icing face-down and lay on wax paper or a wire rack.

ITALIAN ANISE COOKIES

Steps:

• Beat eggs together in a large bowl. Gradually stir white sugar into beaten eggs until smooth. Slowly pour vegetable oil and anise oil into sugar mixture until incorporated. Mix flour and baking powder together in a separate bowl; slowly add to sugar mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon until dough is dry.
• Refrigerate dough, 30 minutes to overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.
• Roll dough into walnut-size balls and arrange on the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cookies are crisp around the edges, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
• Mix confectioners' sugar and milk together in a bowl until desired consistency is reached. Dip a fork into the icing and drizzle over cookies. Allow icing to harden.

ITALIAN ANISE COOKIES RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Add flour and baking powder to a medium mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes.
• Beat in eggs one at a time, add 1 tablespoon of anise extract and anise seeds, and mix until well blended.
• Add the flour mixture a little at a time, and mix until well blended. The dough will be soft and sticky.
• Drop rounded tablespoons of dough 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake 5 to 7 minutes until bottoms are golden brown and the cookie springs back when pressed with your finger.
• Remove the cookies from the baking sheets to a wire rack to cool.
• To make the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and 1/4 teaspoon anise extract in a small bowl until smooth.
• Place the cooling rack of cookies on the cookie sheet to catch drips and the extra sprinkles.
• Grab one cookie, dip the top into the glaze, put it back on the rack, and add the sprinkles right away before the icing begins to harden.
• Repeat with the remaining cookies, and then let the cookies sit until the glaze is hard.
• Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. The recipe makes about 32 cookies.

AUNT DUNETTE'S ITALIAN ANISE BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Beat eggs, sugar, and oil. Mix in flour, baking powder, vanilla, and anise. Spread in greased metal ice cube trays or loaf pans. If using loaf pans, only fill 1/3 full. This recipe makes about 3 trays or pans worth.
• Bake 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and cut in slices crosswise. Place slices on baking sheet and brown under broiler, then flip slices and brown on other side. Watch the cookies carefully, it is easy to burn them in this step. Normally the best idea is to broil with oven door open a crack and watch as they go.

ITALIAN ANISE COOKIES WITH ICING AND SPRINKLES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• For cookies, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add anise extract.
• Blend flour and baking powder. Start by adding about 1/3 of these dry ingredients to the butter/sugar in your mixer, then add 1 T. milk. Add another third of the flour and another 1 T. milk. Finally, mix in enough of the remaining flour until your dough is like a brownie batter (it should be softer than a drop cookie dough).
• Use a 1 T. cookie scooper to make simple round drop cookies - use wet fingers to pat any rough edges OR for an Easter-Egg look, roll 1 T. dough into an elongated ball.
• Bake cookies 10-12 minutes (they won't be brown but the insides will be soft and cake-like).
• For icing: mix sugar, milk and extract to make a sugar glaze. HINT: When I make the icing, I make it thick but then I microwave it for 10 seconds so it is thin enough for dipping. Also, I like to divide the mixture in thirds, and then add ONE DROP of food coloring to each batch (pink, green, yellow).
• Hold cookie in your hand and turn upside down so you can dip the top half in the glaze; turn over and immediately top with sprinkles so they will stick.
• Allow icing to harden overnight; then store in air-tight containers or freeze.

AUNT ANNE'S SESAME COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and anise extract until well blended. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; stir into the butter mixture until well incorporated. If you are using a stand mixer, let the dough mix for another minute to add lightness to the dough. The dough will be soft, but will hand roll easily.
• Pinch off pieces of dough slightly smaller than a walnut, and roll them into small logs. Dip in milk, then roll in sesame seeds. Place cookies one inch apart on a cookie sheet. Cookies will not spread very much.
• Bake for 17 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until bottom and sides of cookies are lightly toasted. Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.