‘The Pioneer Woman’ Ree Drummond Calls Her Recipe for ‘Soft and Cakey’ Italian Christmas Cookies ‘Irresistible’

There is nothing quite as delicious as Christmas Cookies. Many of these tasty delights are only made once a year, making them a treat to look forward to baking as well as eating. Ree Drummond is a massive fan of these miniature sweets and creates different types to share with family and friends on a tray of cookies. One of her favorites is her Italian Christmas cookies, which she claims have a “soft and cakey” texture and are “irresistible.”

Ree Drummond explains the major difference between these and other Christmas cookies

Drummond shared one distinct difference between these cookies and other types of holiday treats.

“These have a texture similar to a thick, just-set sugar cookie. Almond extract gives the dough a subtle, irresistible flavor, and the simple vanilla icing hardens into a delicate shell,” she wrote on her Pioneer Woman website.

“To cut back on time and ensure even baking, use a cookie scoop to portion out the dough. Or, if you’d like to try your hand at the knot shape, dust your hands with flour to help prevent the dough from sticking,” Drummond continued.

A key tip to making sure this cookie stays soft

Drummond has a crucial tip to making sure this dough is ready to shape, and the resulting cookie stays soft.

“The dough should be chilled for one to four hours before being shaped. You’ll want to pull the cookies from the oven when they’re very lightly golden on the bottom but haven’t taken on much color on top,” the Food Network star wrote.

How to make Ree Drummond’s Italian Christmas Cookies

The list of ingredients for Italian Christmas Cookies is not lengthy. Many of these you may already have in your home.

These include granulated sugar, unsalted butter, vanilla extract, almost extract, eggs, flour, baking powder, and salt.

For the icing, you will need powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and sprinkles of your choosing.

Beat sugar, butter, vanilla, and almond extract until fluffy in a mixer. Then add the eggs and beat them together.

Add flour slowly, followed by the baking powder and salt, beating until all the dry ingredients are incorporated.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator for a minimum of one hour. It can be chilled for up to four if needed.

Then after preheating the oven, shape the dough into 1 inch balls and place on a lined cookie sheet with spacing in between for the dough to slightly spread.

You can also roll the dough into small thin logs and wrap it around until it forms a coil.

Bake the cookies until very lightly browned on the bottom. The top will remain a light color.

Allow to cool completely before making the powdered sugar glaze. Dip each cookie into the glaze and decorate with colored sprinkles of your choosing.

The recipe can be found on the Pioneer Woman website.

The Pioneer Woman airs Saturdays at 10 a.m. EST on the Food Network.