My friend Angie makes the best Italian cookies during the holiday season, it’s a recipe passed down from her Nonna and they’re unbelievable. They’re soft, puffy and small Italian cookies with three different colors and a simple icing. The trick? Extra flour, just the right amount of sugar and real deal butter.
Truth be told, I never liked Italian cookies until I tried the ones she made and year after year I would tell Angie that I needed her to make her Nonna’s cookies for me. They’ve officially inspired today’s recipe. Thanks Ang, I love you and think about you often.
I had originally made these glorious orange cookies last year and couldn’t stop eating them. They were soft (just like Angie’s Nonna’s), fluffy, and almost melted in your mouth like those lofthouse style ones from the store. Finally, I’m sharing the recipe with you and if you adore orange as much as I do, I know you’ll love these too.
One of the things I love about these cookies is that they’re so easy to make. Yeah, yeah I realize it’s regular flour, butter and sugar, but that’s the way these Italian cookies roll, mkay?
The dough is infused with real fresh orange juice and orange zest. It’s so good, you’ll think that you’re eating a dreamsicle. Bake them up and then glaze them with a perfectly sweet orange icing. I love these with a cup of coffee and I can’t wait to see you make them.
More cookie recipes you’ll love:
Death by Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Soft Almond Flour Sugar Cookies with Vanilla Buttercream
Chocolate Dipped Brown Butter Tahini Cookies
White Chocolate-Dipped Brown Butter Ginger Cookies with Pistachios
The Cutest Paleo Gingerbread Cookies
Melt In Your Mouth Italian Iced Orange Cookies
Ingredients
- Wet Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup fresh orange juice (or from the carton works too)
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
- Dry Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- For the icing
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- 1 tablespoon softened cream cheese
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
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In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar for 1 minutes until well combined. Turn mixer to medium-low speed and add in egg (make sure it’s at room temp -- you can do this by running the egg under warm water for 1 min); beating until well combined, smooth and creamy into the butter and sugar. Next beat in the orange juice, zest and almond extract for about 30 more seconds.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the wet ingredients and mix together on medium speed until combined.
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Drop about one heaping tablespoon full of dough onto prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. You should end up with 14-16 cookies. Bake for 10-13 minutes until just barely golden brown on the edges.
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Remove and allow to cool on baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling completely. Repeat with remaining dough.
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To make the icing: Once cookies have cooled, make the icing: add the powdered sugar, orange juice, zest, melted butter and softened cream cheese to a bowl. A drop of almond extract is also delicious in the icing, but please only do one drop if you'd like. Dip the top of the cookies in the icing then place back on the wire rack to allow icing to harden. Garnish with a little extra orange zest to make them pretty. Makes about 14-16 cookies.
97 comments
I’m making these for dinner tonight ha! I don’t like baked goods much, but I love orange cake and I know I’ll love these orange cookies! Might be hard pressed to find my 1/8 teaspoon tho! 🙂 Have a great day Monique!
Hope you love these ones Denise! If you love orange cake I have a feeling these might be your new fav 🙂
Beautiful; keeper definitely. Grazie milla !
Enjoy!
such a unique cookie! I will try making it with GF 1:1 flour and tell you my results!
They’re so delicious! Yes – let me know how it goes 🙂
Orange cookies sound so delicious and unique! Can’t wait to try these! 🙂
They are! You should definitely give these a try 🙂
They’re so delicious! Yes – let me know how it goes 🙂
How are these without the icing?? I’m pretty sure I won’t miss it but was wondering how many carb and fat macros I can save if I just the cookie sans icing. Thank you!!!
The cookies themselves are delicious, but the icing takes them to the next level 🙂
Beyond recipt you publishing, I really like photo you making, they are really good. I’m making these cookies tommorow, they looks really teasty.
Hope you love them!
These looks delish! Do you think you could substitute with lemon for same recipe?
Thanks, and happy holidays!
That would be delicious. I’m not 100% sure it would work exactly the same, but please let me know if you try it.
Does the glaze harden completely? Thank you.
It should over a bit of time!
These are so delicious! I love that they aren’t overly sweet and the orange flavor pops. Will definitely make these again!
Absolutely! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
Beautiful and look delish! Do you use salted or unsalted butter?
Unsalted 🙂
Is there a substitution for butter? I would love to make these for my sister-in-law, but she is dairy-free. Thanks!
Coconut oil should work, just make sure it’s melted and cooled.
These are amazing!!!! Such a simple yet great recipe. My family loves them. Thank you!!
Absolutely! Glad you all love them 🙂
I’ve made these 4 times since you posted this recipe. and i’ve gotten so many compliments on them. The first batch I made, my husband ate all of them before I even got a chance to have one!
So happy to hear that, Emily! Hope you’ve finally had a chance to try them, too 🙂
I messed up the icing but these cookies were yum!! My daughter asked for orange cookies today so I’m glad I googled and found you!
I’m so glad you found these! Delicious even without the icing 🙂
Look delish , I’m a beginner for cookies and would like to ask some questions
1.if I have only salt butter , is it OK not to add salt to the recipe?
2.can I change the measurement in the recipe from cup to weight , do u have the recipe in grams?
3.how is the texture of the cookie in the recipe , crispy or soft ?
4.for the glazing if I want the hard finish in a short time , can I bake it for a few minutes after glazing , what do u suggest ?
So many questions 🙂 , thks in advance , can’t wait to try the recipe 🙂
1. Yes feel free to omit the salt if you use salted butter, 2. I actually don’t have the recipe in grams, but an online calculator should help! 3. these are soft cookies 🙂 4. I would actually put the glazed cookies in the fridge for a little bit to have the glaze harden. Hope that helps!
I normally follow the recipe and end up getting tomato bread instead of pizza but this was very easy to follow and also didn’t taste salty and buttery at the end. everything fit in perfectly. Thank u !
I normally follow the recipe and end up getting tomato bread instead of pizza but this was very easy to follow and also didn’t taste salty and buttery at the end. everything fit in perfectly. Thank u !
Can you freeze these cookies glazed?
I recommend freezing them unglazed and then icing them later when you are ready to serve.
Hi Monique,
I just made your cookies and they tasted delicious. However, their texture somehow reminds me of scones. Are they supposed to taste like that? What if I substitute the baking powder to baking soda?
They are an Italian style cookie which requires more flour and less butter! 🙂 so their texture is spot on and correct as is!
This recipe sounds delicious. I wonder if there’s a substitution for the cream cheese in the icing. It’s not something I have on hand or would care to purchase just for one tablespoon.
1/2 tablespoon melted butter should work well!
If I freeze the dough, do you have any recommendations for thawing/baking/
You should be able to just thaw the dough in the refrigerator, and then bake as directed 🙂
Made a double batch of these with GF flour. They were amazing!
Definitely going to be making them again.
I had trouble printing the recipe using the print button as it kept showing an error. I had to copy and paste to be able to print.
Thanks for the recipe
So happy to hear that! Thanks for the heads up on the print button – we’ll look into the issue.
Looks yummy
They’re delicious!
Can you freeze the iced orange cookies?
Absolutely you can freeze these! I would freeze without the icing and then ice them once they are thawed 🙂
I made these today per recipe and found them to be lovely. Thank you.
So happy to hear that!
These are soooo delicious!!!!
Glad you love them!!
My cookies came out delicious but they were more like sponge cake and entirely flat. I definitely added the baking powder. Where could I have gone wrong?
Sounds like your baking powder may have been old. Try with fresh/new baking powder!
I just had my birthday, during the Pandemic, and like most of us, I’m practicing social distancing and I’m home bound. I am trying to conserve my food supply and wanted to make a dessert for myself with extra supplies I have at home. I have plenty of oranges and found this great recipe for Melt In Your Mouth Italian Iced Orange Cookies. This recipe is easy to make and the prep time is only 15 minutes and a bake time of 10 minutes. I found these cookies to be Delicious and a perfect birthday dessert, to myself.
Happy belated birthday! I’m so glad you found these and were able to make a yummy birthday treat 🙂
These look so yummy! Do you think a flax egg would work instead if a real egg? We are running low! #quarantine
Probably! I haven’t tested it but it should be ok!
HI I’m Italian and would love some Italian recipe.
Thank You
Grace
Hi! Check out this category: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/italian-recipes/
These cookies are AMAZING!! I highly recommend making them. Also, don’t worry if your dough isn’t very firm; mine wasn’t but the cookies still came out great!
So happy you loved them!
Can you tell me the substitute of an egg please?
You could try a flax egg but know that I haven’t tested it this way!
Whilst making marmalade I had an extra orange. I found your recipie and added 1oz of C.M spiced rum orange vanilla and used margarine and i used 1/2 tbsp of the rum in the icing. They turned out amazing! So tasty woth a little kick. Thanks for the recipe.
Like a cloud that melts on the tip of your tongue! These really are unbelievable!
I followed the recipe just about entirely as written. But I did add in a tiny drop of orange extrat to the batter – a lovely addition. I’m not the biggest fan of fruity/citrus desserts and sweets, but these cookies really changed my stance.
Amazing! Love the idea of adding orange extract. Glad you loved them!
These. Are. These BEST. Orange cookies I’ve ever had! Made a lemon poppy seed variant as well, and just as decadent. I used a vanilla extract instead of almond for the lemon ones. Heavenly. Added cream cheese with make a creamier glaze, but it won’t harden. Trouble with the icing? Add a tsp or two of meringue powder.
Make sure you have fairly fresh ingredients, and once they start to brown, don’t second guess!
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed!
I was a little scared making these because I don’t have an electric mixer. I just made sure to thoroughly mix by hand with my whisk. Fortunately, they turned out just as they should, delicious!! Will be making these again.
Perfect! So happy to hear that!
These really do melt in the mouth! An absolute must for orange lovers, and Another great way to use my fresh oranges from Valencia, which can double up as gifts for friends. Thank you for sharing this amazing recipe.
Absolutely! Glad you loved them!
Im just wondering what kind of butter salted or unsalted
Either is fine!
Hi! Was wondering if the sugar is granulated or caster? ☺️
Granulated 🙂
I made this recipe with blood orange juice and zest. My neighbor shared her oranges with me and I wanted to make something for her and her grandson. The cookies were delicious and had a wonderful orange flavor! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed 🙂
I made the recipe exactly as written except I used vegan cream cheese. Fantastic recipe!!
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed!
These cookies were a lot sorted that I expected, but they tasted so delicious!
Glad you enjoyed!
So flavorful and soft! I added mini choco chips!
The biggest hit of the holiday cookie tray! Now make them regularly. They taste a little “scone-like” fresh out of the oven, but are better after a day. Sprinkled a bit of cinnamon on top for a sparkle. Also doubled the recipe and made them smaller – too much work for 14 cookies. It didn’t effect the integrity or taste of the cookie!
Amazing! Glad they’re a fav!
Delicious easy recipe
Glad you enjoyed!
~ It’s what happens when you come across a much desired recipe for an exquisitely delicious CooooKie! Elation! I love making exquisitely simple, compact, & nutri-delicious foods. This recipe is now in my library of exquisite recipes.
~ I have been having this feeling for quite some time about encountering an unforgettably tasty-treat recipe. This recipe may be that long awaited culinary blessing.,& it’s an exquisite Italian delicacy!
Amazing! So glad you found this one!
This recipe is amazing. I substituted orange zest with orange oil and it worked just as good. Thanks for this 🙂
Such a smart idea! Glad you loved them 🙂
Do these freeze well?
Definitely! Here’s how I like to freeze cookies: Wait for the cookies to cool completely, then transfer them to a reusable freezer-safe bag or container lined with wax or parchment paper. I like to place them in a single layer to avoid any cookies breaking. Cookies will keep well for up to 2 months. Once ready to eat, simply thaw out at room temperature, add the glaze and enjoy.