These light, fluffy Holiday Italian Ricotta Cookies have an irresistible cake-like texture that will make any cookie lover swoon! They’re topped with an addictive sweet glaze to make them perfect for any occasion!
The holiday season is finally here! It’s time for some baking fun in your kitchen, like these Italian Ricotta Cookies made from scratch. They are a must have for any holiday cookie tray, but also perfect for anytime of the year.
Just swap out the red and green sprinkles for any color to match the occasion. These melt in your mouth delicacies are not only delicious but also make an excellent gift for friends, family, co-workers and more!
Pro Tips
- Using parchment can prevent your cookies from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Chill the dough for at least 2 hours before baking.
- You can make these in advance and freeze them, unbaked or finished.
- Cookies are best within 2-3 days after baking, but if you aren’t going to get around to eating them all at once they last two months in the freezer. Just thaw to room temp before eating.
- Do not overmix the dough, especially if using a stand mixer such as Kitchenaid or other high powered mixer. If you end up with cracking around edges when baking it’s because your overmixed the dough and created too much air which pushed out during baking process.
- For different flavored cookies, try different extracts such as lemon, orange or almond in place of vanilla extract.
- If using a stand mixer for creaming the butter and sugar, ALWAYS start on low then work up to high speed after everything is blended well.
- The dough will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week if you want to make ahead. You can also double the batch and freeze half of it for later use.
Cookie Ingredients
Makes 24 Cookies
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
¾ tsp Kosher salt
1 cup sweet cream butter, softened
1 ¾ cup sugar
1 tsp lemon zest
2 large eggs
1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
1 ¾ cup whole milk ricotta cheese
Glaze Ingredients
2 cups powdered sugar
4-5 Tbsp whole milk
3 Tbsp unsalted sweet cream butter (melted)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Christmas Sprinkles
How to Make Holiday Italian Ricotta Cookies
Prepare the Cookie Dough
In a medium bowl add flour, baking soda and kosher salt. Whisk together until combined.
Using a standing or electric mixer, beat the butter, sugar, lemon zest, vanilla and eggs (add one at a time) until combined, creamy and smooth. Beat in the ricotta cheese until combined.
Gradually beat in the dry ingredients until combined and a soft dough forms. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Make the Cookies
Remove dough from fridge. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Using a small cookie scoop, scoop some dough onto the prepared cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Place cookie sheets in the oven and bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until lightly brown.
Cool the Cookies
Remove cookies from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire cooling rack. Prepare the glaze while the cookies are cooling.
Prepare the Glaze
In a medium bowl, whisk all the glaze ingredients (except the sprinkles) together until smooth and combined.
Dip the top of the cookies into the icing and gently shake the excess off. Place cookies back onto the wire rack and sprinkle some holiday sprinkles on top. Allow the icing to harden before enjoying the cookies!
How to Store
Italian ricotta cookies are easy to make and even easier to store. These tasty treats can be stored in an airtight container for up to one week at room temperature or two months in the freezer.
- Fridge: If you store them in the fridge, eat them cold or let them come to room temperature before eating.
- Freezer: To store them in the freezer, simply place them in a freezer bag and freeze. When you’re ready to serve, let the cookies thaw overnight in the fridge bringing them back to room temperature on their own before serving.
Recipe
Holiday Italian Ricotta Cookies
Ingredients
Cookie Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- ¾ tsp Kosher salt
- 1 cup sweet cream butter softened
- 1 ¾ cup sugar
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 large eggs
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cup whole milk ricotta cheese
Glaze Ingredients
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 4-5 Tbsp whole milk
- 3 Tbsp unsalted sweet cream butter melted
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- Christmas Sprinkles
Instructions
Prepare the Cookie Dough
- In a medium bowl add flour, baking soda and kosher salt. Whisk together until combined.
- Using a standing or electric mixer, beat the butter, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla until combined. Continue beating and add eggs in one at a time until creamy and smooth. Beat in the ricotta cheese until combined.
- Gradually beat in the dry ingredients until combined and a soft dough forms. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Make the Cookies
- Remove dough from fridge. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Using a small cookie scoop, scoop some dough onto the prepared cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Place cookie sheets in the oven and bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until lightly brown.
Cool the Cookies
- Remove cookies from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire cooling rack. Prepare the glaze while the cookies are cooling.
Prepare the Glaze
- In a medium bowl, whisk all the glaze ingredients (except the sprinkles) together until smooth and combined.
- Dip the top of the cookies into the icing and gently shake the excess off. Place cookies back onto the wire rack and sprinkle some holiday sprinkles on top. Allow the icing to harden before enjoying the cookies!
Notes
How to Store
Italian ricotta cookies are easy to make and even easier to store. These tasty treats can be stored in an airtight container for up to one week at room temperature or two months in the freezer. Fridge: If you store them in the fridge, eat them cold or let them come to room temperature before eating. Freezer: To store them in the freezer, simply place them in a freezer bag and freeze. When you're ready to serve, let the cookies thaw overnight in the fridge bringing them back to room temperature on their own before serving.Nutrition Disclosure
Nutritional facts are estimates and are provided as a courtesy to the reader. Please utilize your own brand nutritional values to double check against our estimates. Nutritional values are calculated via a third party. Changing ingredients, amounts or cooking technique will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
Leave a Reply