Italian Easter Cookies have a hint of sweetness with a delicious lemon glaze. These knot cookies are easy to make and topped with pastel sprinkles.
Italian Easter Cookies look so festive and taste great for easy Easter Desserts. They are absolutely delicious and so pretty! If you need a dessert for parties or Easter lunch, this is a great recipe that I have made for years. I also love to make Easter Cookie Cake, Peeps Rice Krispie Treats and Easter Rice Krispie Treats.
Another decadent Italian dessert is Cannoli Cake.
Table of contents
Why We Love This
Italian cookies are not overly sweet and can be served not only as dessert but with brunch. The fresh lemon glaze gives the cookies the best flavor.
They are delicious cookies commonly seen around Easter. You might also hear them called Taralli Dolci. They are lightly sweetened and shaped into knots.
Another name you might hear is Uncinetti. This is Italian for crochet. The cookie is supposed to resemble a crochet knot.
The pretty pastel sprinkles make the cookies so festive for Easter. Everyone will love the simple powdered sugar glaze on top. It really is delicious.
Ingredients
Cookies
- Butter. Make sure to soften at room temperature.
- Vanilla Extract. Pure Vanilla Extract is best.
- Lemon Zest. This gives the cookies such a fresh citrus taste.
Glaze
- Powdered Sugar. It is important to sift the flour before using to remove any lumps.
- Lemon Juice. Fresh is best and will result in better flavor.
The complete ingredient list and recipe card can be found at the bottom.
Variations and Substitutions
- Extract. You can try other flavors with these cookies. Some ideas include almond, Anise extract and lemon extract. You might like to use both vanilla and almond extracts together.
- Try other types of sprinkles. While these are traditional Easter cookies, they are so good you will want to enjoy year round. Simply substitute other types of sprinkles to enjoy for other occasions.
- Food coloring. Feel free to add any color of food dye to the glaze. I think any pastel Easter egg shade would be pretty.
How to Make Italian Easter Cookies
Step 1. Cream the butter and sugar with a stand mixer or a hand mixer. Next, add the eggs, vanilla extract and lemon zest. Combine until light and fluffy with a paddle attachment. I prefer to use the bowl of a stand mixer.
Step 2. Mix the milk into the other ingredients until combined.
Step 3. Get out a separate bowl. Mix together the combined flour and baking powder with the salt.
Step 4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Combine these together until just combined. Be careful not to overmix. Cover and refrigerate overnight or at least an hour.
Step 5. Take pieces of the cookie dough from the bowl and roll them into 5 or 6 inch long ropes. Make sure the ropes are thin because they will rise as they bake. Make knots out of the dough ropes.
Step 6. Put the cookies on the prepared cookie sheet and bake in a preheated oven. Bake them for 15 to 18 minutes or until they are lightly golden brown. As the cookies bake, use this time to make the glaze. Get out a large bowl, whisk the powdered sugar, lemon juice and milk.
Step 7. Put the cookies on the sheet and bake. Bake them for 15 to 18 minutes or until they are lightly golden brown. Allow to cool. Then add the glaze to each cookie.
Step 8. Top with pastel colors of sprinkles and enjoy.
Storage
Place cookies inside an airtight container. They will last up to 1 week.
Make sure to wait to store the cookies until completely cool and the glaze has set. If you do this too soon, the cookies will stick together in the container.
You don’t want to mess up your pretty cookies!
Also, you can place a piece of bread in the container with the cookies to help keep them moist.
Expert Tips
- Line baking sheets. You can line with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. This will make clean up easier with the glaze and sprinkles.
- Add the sprinkles immediately. The sugar icing will harden quickly so the icing needs to be added right away. Otherwise the sprinkles will not stick.
- Roll the ropes thin. Keep in mind they will rise, so you don’t want the ropes too large. Otherwise the knots will be too big.
More Easter Dessert Recipes
- Easter Chocolate Covered Oreos
- Birds Nest Cookies Recipe
- Easter Dirt Cups Recipe
- Best Easter Dessert Recipes
- Easter Bunny Chow
- Crock Pot Easter Candy Clusters
I can’t wait for you to make them. Please leave a star rating once you do.
Italian Easter Cookies
Ingredients
FOR THE COOKIES:
- 2 1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup Butter softened
- 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
- 3 Large Eggs
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- Zest of 1 Lemon
- 1 Tbsp Baking Powder
- 1/4 cup Milk
- 1/4 tsp Salt
FOR THE GLAZE:
- 2 cups Powdered Sugar shifted
- 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice fresh
- 1 Tbsp Milk
- Multi-Color Pastel Sprinkles
Instructions
- Beat together the butter and sugar in a stand up mixer or with a hand held mixer until the ingredients are creamed together and smooth.
- Then add in the eggs, vanilla extract and lemon zest.ย Mix until combined and light and fluffy.
- Then add in the milk and mix until incorporated.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt together.ย Then gradually add these dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.ย Mix together until the ingredients are just combined – do not over mix.
- Then cover the dough and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
- Then preheat the oven to 300 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove pieces of dough from the bowl and roll into 5-6 inch long ropes (the ropes should be thin as they will rise as they bake).ย Then form knots out of the dough ropes.ย Place the formed knot cookies on the baking sheet and bake for 15-18 minutes until the cookies are lightly golden brown.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes and then move the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the cookies are cooling, make the glaze.ย In a bowl, stir together the powdered sugar, lemon juice and milk.
- Once the cookies are cool, cover them with the glaze and topย with the pastel sprinkles.
- Enjoy!
