Italian Butter Cookies

Name: Italian Butter Cookies
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoon baking powder; ½ teaspoon kosher salt; 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature, 2 sticks; 1 cup confectioners’ sugar; 2 large egg yolks; 1 teaspoon vanilla; 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips; sprinkles

The Estate Bakery

Italian Butter Cookies

Print Recipe

The Strategy:

There is a beautiful, light, and melt-in-your-mouth magic to classic Italian butter cookies that brings immediate elegance to any sweet table. Neatly piped into star-ridged ovals, baked to a delicate gold, and finished by dipping in glossy melted semisweet chocolate and festive sprinkles, they are as fun to make as they are beautiful to present. They are a timeless bakery classic, offering the ultimate nostalgic and sophisticated accompaniment to fresh coffee or warm conversation.

Makes: about 3 dozen 1-inch cookies | Total Time: 30 minutess till it’s ready

Ingredients

For dry ingredients

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt

For wet ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature, 2 sticks
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla

For toppings

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
sprinkles

An overhead, neatly organized mise en place for Italian butter cookies on a white marble countertop. Styled white ceramic dishes contain room temperature butter sticks, confectioners' sugar, egg yolks, flour, chocolate chips, and sprinkles.

Instructions

Make dough

Preheat your oven to 350°.
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
Use an electric mixer to beat the butter until it is fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Stop the machine and add the confectioners’ sugar. Mix in the sugar on low speed, working up to medium.
Stir in the egg yolks, one at a time.
Stir in the vanilla.
Add the flour in 3 additions.

Pipe and bake

Spoon about a third of the dough into a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip.
Pipe the batter onto the baking sheet in about 2-inch lengths about 2 inches apart. Continue until all of the dough is piped.
Bake until the cookies are firm, about 12 to 14 minutes.
Transfer to a rack and cool.

Decorate

While cookies are cooling, place the chocolate chips in a glass bowl. Heat in the microwave at 50% power in 30-second increments, stirring until melted.
Dip half of each cookie in the chocolate and top with sprinkles. Let sit until the chocolate hardens, about 30 minutes.

Thing to Note:

Thing to Note:

Thing to Note:

For true Italian butter cookies, you should use the star tip to pipe. But for fun, you can use other tips to create your favorite shapes. If you’re in a hurry, use an ice cream scoop to mound cookies onto the baking sheet and flatten to form circles.

Close-up action shot of clean hands holding a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip, piping beautiful 2-inch ridged cookie dough lengths onto parchment paper in a sunny, high-end kitchen.

The full recipe lives in the Vault

Ingredients, step-by-step method, and every chef-tested detail are reserved for members of the Estate Registry.

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The Heart of the Table

There is a beautiful, deeply comforting sense of warmth and nostalgia that fills the kitchen when the sweet aroma of confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and warm, golden butter starts to waft from the oven. As these cookies bake and their delicate ridges turn golden brown, they become the centerpiece of the sweet table. Dipped in glossy melted chocolate and adorned with festive, colorful sprinkles, they represent a timeless bakery classic that brings immediate elegance and a sense of shared joy. Piled high on a serving stand, they anchor the table with sweet comfort, turning simple moments into cherished, sweet memories.

Exactly eight young adult guests enjoying dessert, laughing, and sharing chocolate-dipped Italian butter cookies from a porcelain serving stand on a sun-drenched coastal veranda overlooking the ocean.

Neighborly Grace

THE PRESENTATION: Stack these colorful, chocolate-dipped ridged cookies in an attractive circular mound on a footed pedestal stand, garnished with a few fresh raspberries or edible flowers around the base.
THE POUR: A warm cappuccino, a bold dark roast espresso, or a glass of dry Vin Santo. The rich milkiness of cappuccino or the honeyed sweetness of Vin Santo beautifully cuts through the buttery crumb and complements the chocolate-dipped tips.
THE VIBE: Relaxed Sunday brunch on the terrace, lively afternoon tea socials on a coastal veranda, or cozy late-night sweet treats under the stars with family.

Chef’s Recommendations

The Other Cookie on the Tray: Chocolate Cookies with Wild Blueberry Sugar
Chocolate, Again: Maple Pecan Bars
The Italian Cookie Tray: Biscotti with Brown-Sugared Pine Nuts and Chocolate Chips
The Glass Alongside: Festive Pomegranate Sparkler

Italian Butter Cookies

Italian Butter Cookies

The full recipe lives in the Vault

The Heart of the Table

Neighborly Grace

✨ The Gilded Swaps