Ricotta Cookies

These are my mother’s favorite cookies. One year, as is our semi-tradition, we had gone to the IX Center for one of the big holiday shows and Miceli’s was handing out samples of small white cookies with a simple glaze. They were amazing: soft enough to melt in your mouth and sweet, but not too sweet. I can’t count how many times we went back for cookies, laughing at ourselves every time – thank goodness we could hide in the giant crowd.

A while after the show, I surprised my mom by making her a batch of these cookies for her birthday. She was thrilled! My sister, Anna, who wasn’t the most adventurous eater as a child, LOVED these and ate several as the rest of the family tried to hide our giggles. You should have seen her face when we told her she was eating cheese cookies! Ha!

I make these cookies every christmas – they have become as much a tradition at my house as christmas stockings.

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
15 ounces ricotta cheese
2 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbs. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1-1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
3 tbs. milk

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, with the mixer on a low speed, beat the sugar and butter until combined. Increase speed to high and beat in the ricotta, vanilla and eggs.
3. Reduce speed to low. Add flour, baking powder and salt; beat until dough forms.
4. Drop dough by level tablespoons, about 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or until cookies are very lightly golden (cookies will be soft). With spatula, remove cookies to wire rack to cool.
5. When cookies are cool, prepare icing. In small bow, stir confectioners’ sugar and milk until smooth. With small spreader, spread icing on cookies.

Notes:
* A stand mixer will make your life so much easier. These will come together in no time at all. A hand mixer will struggle with this dough, unless it is on the more powerful end of the spectrum.
* I can’t vouch for the frosting instructions. I usually make extra frosting to ice other cookies. I just mix milk and powdered sugar until I get the consistency I want. Frosting can be colored with food coloring – I like paste or gel as it doesn’t water down the frosting any. I like the frosting a little on the thicker side so it doesn’t run off the cookies. If you have liquid color, you could just adjust by using slightly less milk. You could also sprinkle with sugar or use other decorations.
* I recommend frosting the cookies – they really do need that touch of sweetness.
*These cookies will really be light golden. If you cook them too much, they will not be as tender, which is their biggest selling point.

Oil Pretzels

These are cookies, but in the biscotti/biscuits mold and nothing like pretzels in the traditional sense. My first memory of these comes from a trip back to Pennsylvania for a family reunion. My mom’s side of the family is huge and everyone brought food to the picnic and I remember going from table to table, with my mom, tasting. I’m not sure how old I was, but I was pretty young. This is the first time I remember eating Aunt Katie’s oil pretzels. Aunt Katie was my grandmother’s sister.

This recipe is pretty standard for those my grandmother wrote down – a little light on the details.

12 eggs (warm)
1 3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. oil
1 yeast dissolved into 1/4 c. warm water
rest 20 minutes
boil til they float
bake 325 20 min.

Finally!

We’ve been talking in our family for a long time about writing down our favorite recipes. We’ve never gotten around to the task – until now. Hopefully.