These delicious anise cookies are a holiday favorite. They are snowball cookies with anise flavoring and so easy to make. With simple recipe and minimal ingredients, they are quick to whip up and perfect for sharing with loved ones.
About These Italian Anise Cookies
Italians have cookies that are called Anisette cookies which are rolled anise cookies with an anise frosting and sprinkles. While they taste amazing, I prefer a simpler method of making them and that is by rolling them in powdered sugar. You can call this version, Anise snowball cookies!
These cookies melt in your mouth and they are so simple and so easy to make. The flavor of anise is not overly strong so it is perfect for kids and those who may not usually like the licorice flavor of anise.
It is a wonderful holiday cookie and perfect for adding to your holiday dessert table and cookie boxes.
Ingredients And Substitutions
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Kosher salt
- Unsalted butter
- Anise extract: You can use anise oil or crushed anise seed if you prefer. If using the oil, use half the amount in the recipe. For anise seed, crush them finely with a mortar and pestle and use double the amount the recipe calls for.
- Sugar
- Powdered sugar
- Granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
How To Make Anise Snowball Cookies
- Cream butter: You want to start with creaming the butter and the anise.
- Whip until fluffy: After the butter is creamed, add the sugar and mix until fluffy then add in the egg and mix until incorporated.
- Add dry ingredients: Now you add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt) to the creamed mixture and mix until the dough becomes crumbly.
- Roll: Remove your dough from the fridge and begin taking small chunks of dough warming them in your hands and roll them into little snowballs.
- Bake: Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
- Cool: When done baking, allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet.
- Add powdered sugar: Roll in powdered sugar after they have cooled slightly.
Storing
These cookies store really well. I have had great success making these and storing them in an airtight container for up to one week. If you plan on storing them longer, place them on a plate side by side then cover and refrigerate.
I don't recommend freezing them already powdered with sugar. You can freeze the dough though for up to 3 months. Just thaw the dough in the fridge overnight.
Recipe Faqs
Yes, anise seed can be used in place of anise extract or anise oil. It is lighter in flavor so you will want to double the amount of anise seed if you do this.
Anise has a black licorice flavor and you only need a little bit of it when baking and cooking.
More Italian Cookies
Here are some more delicious cookie ideas!
Easy Anise Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon anise extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- powdered sugar for rolling cookies in (about 1 cup)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl.2 cups all purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Using electric mixer, beat butter and anise in large bowl until light.¾ cup unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon anise extract
- Add both sugars and beat until fluffy.½ cup sugar, ¼ cup powdered sugar
- Beat in egg.1 large egg
- Add dry ingredients.
- Using spoon, stir until mixture forms a crumbly dough. You can use your hands to mix it together as well.
- Grab a heaping tablespoon of cookie dough and roll into a ball then place on a lined cookie sheet.
- Repeat this process until you rolled all of your dough into cookie balls making sure to space them about 1 inch apart.
- Bake until cookies turn lightly brown on bottoms, about 10-15 minutes. At 10 minutes I like to check the cookies by gently lifting up one cookie on the pan and looking at the bottom to see if it is a brown.
- Once they are done, remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack.
- Let cookies cool completely then using a small spoon or fork, transfer cookies to a bowl of powdered sugar, rolling them around so they get nice and coated.powdered sugar
- Repeat this process until you have coated all your cookies with powdered sugar.
- Dust with a little more powdered sugar before serving.
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