Ciambelles

Ciambelles are anise and lemon Italian cookies! They can come in all shapes and sizes but are typically topped with a lemon glaze. One of my favorite cookies from my childhood.

Ciambelles are pretty easy to make, I have to say the hardest part is stirring in that last cup of flour! But let’s get started!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a sheet pan with parchment.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder, set aside. In another large bowl, beat the eggs with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer until foamy. Gradually add the sugar while beating the eggs. Then add the sifted flour mixture and the melted butter alternating as you continuously mix ending on flour. The last cup or so of flour may be too much for your mixer to handle and it might need to be mixed in by hand. Once its all incorporated, mix the lemon extract, anise extract and lemon rind.

Scoop out dough and roll into one inch balls. Like I mentioned before, Ciambelles can come in many different shapes and sizes. This post highlights making them into balls.

Bake for about 7 – 8 minutes. Check that the bottoms are lightly browned. Then cool on a wire rack and continue with remaining dough.

Once the Ciambelles are completely cooled, mix up the glaze. In a medium bowl, mix together the powdered sugar, softened butter, lemon extract and water. I use about three tablespoons of water, but if you would like your glaze thinner use more water or vice versa if you would like thicker glaze.

You can also add a drop or two of food coloring to the glaze, if you want it to have a little tint to it.

Glaze the tops of the cookies and garnish with sprinkles, if desired. Let set before storing or all the glaze will stick together!

Enjoy!

Recipes you might like:

• Spritz Cookies
• Pizzelles
• Rum Balls

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