Holiday baking: Italian spice cookies

Like a spicy cookie? This one is for you!

Several years ago, a friend of mine asked me to revamp a family cookie recipe that was missing ingredients. And here it is!

Apparently, the spice cookies were popular in many Italian families because years later, I found an almost identical recipe tucked away in my families recipe collection!

Thank you, Kathy for bringing this amazing recipe to light!

Italian Spice Cookies

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp Allspice
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup ground pine nuts
• 1 egg

Preheat oven to 350*.
Line 2 baking (cookie) sheets with no-stick foil.
Grind nuts in a food processor (or coffee bean grinder). Nuts will be sticky after they are ground.
Whisk together: flour, baking powder and soda, sugar, cloves, Allspice, cinnamon and cocoa.
Pour dry mixture into bowl for stand mixer.
Add shortening and nuts to four mixture and mix on low (#2) speed.
Add egg.
Pour milk in slowly.
Allow mixture to form into a large ball.
Roll into 1 inch balls and place on prepared cookie sheets. You should get about 12 cookies per sheet.
Bake for about 9 minutes.
Allow cookies to cool on cookie sheets for 2-3 minutes before removing them. Cookies are soft and will break apart if moved while they are still hot.
Store airtight after completely cooled.

More Italian cookies:

Italian love knot recipe 

Peanut butter ball recipe

Pignoli cookie recipe