Pillow like lemon and ricotta cookies are dipped in a tart yet sweet lemon glaze to make this traditional Italian Christmas treat. These cake-like cookies puff up in the oven almost like little muffins tops, and the tart lemon glaze adds a slightly crunchy shell. This non-chocolate, tart and sweet cookie is the perfect thing to round out your holiday treat assortment.
Italian Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
35 mins
Pillow like lemon and ricotta cookies are dipped in a tart yet sweet lemon glaze to make this traditional Italian Christmas treat. These cake-like little cookies puff up in the oven almost like muffins tops, and the tart lemon glaze adds a slightly crunchy shell.
Course:
Cookies
Cuisine:
Christmas, Italian
Tags:
Christmas cookies, Italian Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Servings: 36
Ingredients
Cookies
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 15 ounces whole-milk ricotta cheese
- Zest of one lemon
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Glaze
- 1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
- Zest of one lemon
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice more if needed for consistency
Method
Cookies
-
Preheat the oven to 375°F and line 2 baking trays with silpats or parchment paper.
-
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
-
In a large bowl with a hand mixer cream together the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time beating until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice and beat to combine.
-
Stir in the dry ingredients. Chill dough for 30 minutes.
-
Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon drop the chilled dough on to the baking tray spacing about 2” apart. Bake cookies for about 15 minutes or until slightly golden at the edges.
-
Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 20 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to completely cool.
Glaze
-
While the cookies are cooling combine the confectioners’ sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a small bowl and stir until smooth.
-
Dip the tops of the cooled cookies into the glaze and return them to the wire rack. Sprinkle cookies with sprinkles or sanding sugar if desired.
-
Let the glaze harden for several hours to prevent sticking. Store in an airtight container.
Cooks Notes
Slightly chilling the dough before dropping will keep the cookies from spreading out and becoming flat.
Glaze should be about the consistency of maple syrup for dipping. Add sprinkles while glaze is wet.
Allow glaze to completely dry before storing.
I think this recipe is supposed to have baking soda in it because these did not rise and are flat. I looked at every other recipe for lemon ricotta cookies and they all have baking soda in them. So that just must be the key to my flat cookies.
Interesting. I just made these again and they rose beautifully. I checked all my notes and they use baking powder as I have listed.
These cookies look sooo good! Found you at Friday Frenzy.
Thanks for stopping by! They are extremely delicious! These are all gone already, I am going to have to make more for Christmas!
I just made these….and boy oh boy what a pain to try and find out how 15 ounces related to cups. My package of ricotta from our local organic cheesery was 400 grams. 15 ounces equals 1.875 cups. LOL. So there I was, trying to fit the ricotta into a cup measurement, making a total mess and trying to figure out how to do 1.875 cups for the second one. Soooooooo…..I just put the whole 400 grams in the recipe and it turned out GREAT. 🙂 Lovely cookies btw, they are going to our family cookie bake and exchange on Satuday and I’ll be saving this recipe to make again and again.
It sure would be easier if there was only one system for measure. Glad you were able to sort it out, and very glad to hear you liked the cookies. Thanks for sharing!