Italian Anise Cookies

I love making Italian food. And coconut chicken.

The ever-so-wise Joe Jonas

Anise cookies are my all-time, will-eat-5-for-breakfast, never-can-be-found-without-dairy, favorite cookies. Obviously the holidays are have passed (and I definitely need to chill with the cookies) but I couldn’t resist sharing this recipe. I have finally made the perfect dairy free Italian Anise cookie.

INGREDIENTS: ~2 dozen cookies

• 1/2 cup dairy free butter, softened (not melted. I used SmartBalance.)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 2 tsp anise extract (found in spices section next to vanilla!)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 5 tbsp water
• Additional 1/4 tsp anise extract (this is for the glaze)
• Little round rainbow sprinkles!

STEPS:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Mix butter and sugar together until smooth, then add the eggs. A hand beater works best here, but whisking quickly will also help add air into the batter, thus making it fluffy/frothy.
3. Add the almond milk, vanilla, and 2 tsp anise and mix.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and baking powder. Slowly add the dry to the wet, stirring in about 2 cups at a time. (Eyeball it)
5. Make 1-2 inch balls of dough and lay out on the baking sheets. Make sure they’re evenly spaced!
6. Bake for 10 minutes. In the meantime, make the glaze! (and do your dishes. ;-p) Mix together the confectioner’s sugar, water, and 1/4 tsp anise extract. The glaze can’t be too liquid, so add more confectioner’s sugar as needed. Keep stirring to avoid the glaze hardening.
7. Once the cookies are COMPLETELY COOL (if you’re in a time crunch, toss ’em in the fridge for 10 minutes) you may dip them in the glaze. Sprinkle some rainbow nonpareils on top and viola! Let the glaze solidify for a few minutes and you’re done!