Italian Ricotta Cookies are soft, cake-like little cookies with lovely flavor and a tasty icing on top! They are easy to make and perfect for any holiday – especially Christmas!
Why You’ll Love Italian Ricotta Cookies
- Sweet with a hint of tanginess. These ricotta cookies are very vanilla, but they also have a little lemon zest as well, giving them a refreshing flavor. Not cheesy at all!
- Soft and tender. With their cake-like texture, it’s like eating tasty little pillows!
- Perfect for the holidays. These light cookies are easily decorated with red and green sprinkles, making them a great choice for a Christmas cookie party.
Looking for more Christmas cookie ideas? Try my buttery Spritz cookies recipe, these easy gingerbread cookies or these classic snowball cookies.
What Are Italian Ricotta Cookies?
Italian ricotta cookies are soft, cake-like cookies made with ricotta cheese, which gives them a tender texture and subtle richness. Lightly sweet and delicately flavored, often with vanilla, lemon, or almond extract, they’re typically topped with a simple glaze and sometimes garnished with sprinkles. These cookies are a traditional treat served during holidays, but they are more Italian-American vs. authentically Italian. You’ll love their melt-in-your-mouth quality and slightly tangy, buttery flavor.
What You’ll Need
These cookies contain ingredients you should mostly have on hand with a couple exceptions. For exact amounts and the full set of directions, check out the recipe card below.
- All purpose flour
- Baking soda – Some recipes use a combination of baking soda and baking powder, but I prefer all baking soda. I generally prefer that in cookies and it definitely applies here. I find that it gives a more moist and tender cookie that stays softer for longer. I find that adding in baking powder makes them more dense, which I don’t love.
- Salt
- Vanilla extract
- Butter – Give this time to soften before you begin.
- Eggs
- Sugar
- Lemon zest – While you could leave this out, the cookie flavor might be a little dull without it. The cookies taste ever so slightly of lemon. It’s not super obvious, but it’s there and very tasty!
- Ricotta cheese – As I said before, these cookies don’t taste like cheese. But, the ricotta does lend some richness to the cookies and adds to their texture, making them moist and soft.
Watch How These Cookies Are Made
Tips for the Best Italian Ricotta Cookies
- Cream the butter and sugar for the full 3-4 minutes. This step helps add air to the cookie dough that’s important for your cookies to rise properly.
- Don’t over-mix the cookie dough. When you add the dry ingredients, don’t over-mix or you could end up with tough cookies.
- Possible variations. You can swap out the sprinkles for any festive mix you like. Or, you could even swap out the vanilla and lemon flavor of these for some almond or coconut extract. The options are endless!
Proper Storage
- Room temperature. You can store these Italian ricotta cookies in an airtight container in a single layer. They should be good for 2-3 days this way.
- Fridge. You can also keep them in the fridge in an airtight container for 4-5 days.
- Freezer. If you haven’t iced the cookies yet, go ahead and freeze them in a freezer-safe container for 2-3 months.
More Christmas Cookie Recipes
Italian Ricotta Cookies
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Ingredients
Cookies
- 3 ¾ cups (488g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 ¾ cups (362g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 15 ounces | 1 ¾ cups whole milk ricotta cheese
Icing
- 2 cups (230g) powdered sugar
- 4-5 tablespoons milk
- 3 tablespoons butter (melted)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
- Cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest together in a large mixer bowl on medium speed for 3-4 minutes, until light in color and fluffy. You should be able to see the change in color and texture happen and know it’s ready.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until well combined between each addition.
- Add the vanilla extract and ricotta and mix until well combined.
- Slowly add the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Do not over mix.
- If you’d like to chill the cookie dough (which makes it a easier to work with), cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 2 hours or up to two days. You don’t have to chill the dough though. It doesn’t really change the outcome.
- Drop tablespoon sized balls (no larger or they will spread too much) of cookie dough onto the cookie sheet and gently shape into a ball shape.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the bottoms of the cookies are lightly golden.
- Cool cookies on the cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- To make the icing, whisk the powdered sugar, milk, butter and vanilla extract together in a small bowl.
- Turn the cookies upside down, one at a time, and dip the tops of them into the icing.
- Turn the cookies over and add sprinkles. Allow to dry. The icing will crust over, but doesn’t dry hard.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container. The sprinkles will likely bleed after sitting overnight, so if you want the presentation to be nice, I’d suggest adding the icing and sprinkles shortly before serving. The icing also starts to wrinkle after a day or two. Cookies are best for about 4-5 days.
Video
Notes
- Yield. The amount this recipe makes can vary a little depending on how big you make the cookies
- To store. You can store these Italian ricotta cookies in an airtight container in a single layer. They should be good for 2-3 days this way. You can also keep them in the fridge in an airtight container for 4-5 days.
- To freeze. If you haven’t iced the cookies yet, go ahead and freeze them in a freezer-safe container for 2-3 months.
Nutrition
The nutrition facts provided are calculated using a third-party tool and are estimates only. Actual nutritional content may vary based on the ingredients and brands you use, as well as portion sizes. For accurate results, please consult a registered dietitian or nutritionist.
Do you have to drain the Ricotta cheese
I didn’t, but mine wasn’t super watery. If you feel like yours is, you certainly can.
Could I sub almond extract for the vanilla and can I use salted butter and delete the salt
Yes, that should be fine.
Haven’t made them yet but when comparing recipes most gave baking powder. You list baking soda. Is that correct?
Yes, it is correct. I tried them with baking powder and I absolutely prefer the texture using baking soda. You get a more tender cookie with baking soda.
I loved these cookies, they are delicious and addicting. The lemon zest is perfect, they don’t taste like lemon but just a nice flavor.
So glad you enjoyed them!
While cooking the cookies became flat can I add more flour? First time baker and I think I over blended. They still taste amazing though almost like the lemon Girl Scout cookies!