Looking for an italian cookie recipe....

[dg39]

My grandmother use to make these cookies shaped like bows. I don't have that recipe, but, she's long gone and no one in the family has it. I'm hoping someone here knows what I'm talking about. I do know that Vermouth was part of it, but, thats all I remember. She use to make them in batches for the holidays and I remember them being absolutely delicious.

I searched and searched the web to no avail. They have a few recipes for bow cookies but, none with Vermouth.

Can someone help...TIA...

 

[debster812]

My grandmother use to make these cookies shaped like bows. I don't have that recipe, but, she's long gone and no one in the family has it. I'm hoping someone here knows what I'm talking about. I do know that Vermouth was part of it, but, thats all I remember. She use to make them in batches for the holidays and I remember them being absolutely delicious.

I searched and searched the web to no avail. They have a few recipes for bow cookies but, none with Vermouth.

Can someone help...TIA...

I have a GREAT Mary Ann Esposito (of the Ciao Italia cooking shows on PBS) cookbook for 'special occasions. She has an entire chapter on Italian cookies. I'll see if there's one in there that's bow shaped, with vermouth. I won't be able to check til later tonight.

 

[paigevz]

Now why be so exclusionary? Why must your cookies be of a certain shape and heritage and with this certain component? Why do they have to have vermouth in them? Why can't any other cookie do? What's wrong with peanut butter in a round shape? Or chocolate chip in a triangle? How about a drop with a kiss in it? Can't all the cookies just be treated equally???????????????

 

[ChrisnSteph]

There this one:

ITALIAN KNOT COOKIES (CREAM CHEESE)
1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 stick butter, softened
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla
5 teaspoons baking powder
5 cups flour (approx)
Icing:
powdered sugar
water
anisette extract (or whatever flavoring you prefer)
food coloring, if desired
sprinkles
Sift flour and baking powder. Set aside.
In a large bowl combine cream cheese, butter and butter with mixer. Add sugar and beat until smooth and creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and continue beating until fluffy. Add flour mixture. You will have to stir by hand at the end because it will be too stiff to beat with the mixer.

Form dough into a large ball and let set for a few minutes. If dough is too soft, you can add more flour, a little at a time. Shape small pieces of dough into knot shape by rolling between hands into a rope and twisting into knot shape.

Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350°F until lightly browned on bottom. DO NOT OVERBAKE. Cookies will not be brown on top when done. Only the bottom.

Cool on wire racks and dip into icing. Dust with sprinkles. Let dry on sheets of waxed paper.

And this one:

TALIAN BOW KNOT COOKIES
4 c. flour
4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. salt
6 beaten eggs
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. oil
1 1/2 tsp. lemon extract
Blend beaten eggs into dry ingredients, following with all other ingredients. Knead until smooth. Roll into pencil lengths and tie in bow knots. Bake on greased cookie sheets in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes.
LEMON ICING:
1/4 c. butter
1 lb. confectioner's sugar
Juice of 2 lemons
Cream butter, add remaining ingredients. Stir until well blended. If too thin, add more sugar. Too thick, add more lemon juice.

AND this one:

ITALIAN KNOT COOKIES
6 eggs
1/2 c. butter, melted
1/2 pt. heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. orange extract
1 tsp. lemon extract
1 tsp. anise extract
5 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c. sugar
Pinch of salt
3 tbsp. baking powder
In a bowl combine eggs, butter, heavy cream and the extracts. Beat well and set aside. In another bowl combine all the dry ingredients.
Gradually add dry ingredients to egg mixture until soft dough forms. Turn dough onto a floured board. Take about 1/2 ounce of dough and roll between fingers to form a long piece. Twist into a knot. Bake knots at 375 degrees for 12-14 minutes

Frosting: Squeeze the juice of 2 lemons into 1/2 box of confectioners' sugar. Mix until smooth, adding milk if needed. Glaze cookies; then sprinkle with nonpariels. Recipe yields about 5 dozen cookies.

 

[beattyfamily]

I've got a recipe for these that we call Christmas bows or ribbons:

Let me know if you want the recipe. It does not contain Vermouth. I've never seen one that does.

These are fried.

 

[ChrisnSteph]

Maybe this is what you're looking for?

No need to preheat the oven as these biscuits are cooked in deep fat similar to the way you would deep fry doughnuts.
Ingredients:
Take a small glass and crack two eggs into the glass.
In a same size glass measure the same volume of sugar
then the same volume of cooking oil
then half the volume of vermouth(bianco)this gives the distinctive flavor
and half the volume of milk
plain flour
Method:
Add all ingredients except flour into a medium sized bowl
add flour a little at a time
Mix into a dough similar in consistency to pastry...
Roll out thinly into a square shape on a floured surface
cut into strips about one centimeter wide(use a fancy cutter if possible)
tie each strip into a loose knot...(that's the tricky part)
and fry a few at a time in hot fat until golden brown.
*(make sure the fat doesn't get too hot)*
turn out onto absorbent kitchen roll,
sprinkle with icing sugar and allow to cool.

I found these biscuits are best served in the evening with a nice glass of white wine. Would say they are a cross between doughnuts and pastry and not too sweet.

 

[gina2000]

I believe the recipe you are looking for is called in dialect "e-wand." They have the shape of kryschiki but are thicker and have a great taste. I don't have the recipe readily available but could find it if you want it.

 

[dg39]

Thank you all so much for your help..I''m already thinking about my holiday baking and want to get all my recipes in order. Baking for me is such a "job" as I cook better than bake. I have my struffolo, italian cheese cake, wine cookies and some other favorites all ready. I wanted to try these bow cookies this year, because my dh has mentioned them several times.

I usually bake mainly the italian cookies, and some regular cookies for Christmas.

I think the recipe is the one that ChrisnStef posted, but, I'm curious about the one that gina2000 is talking about.

I will also make one of the recipes that ChrisnStef posted w/o the vermouth.

Page, your post made me laugh. I always say to my friends that I have to make my Italian Cheese Cake and some of them look at me like I'm crazy, like cheese cake has a nationality. But the italian one is made with ricotta (italian) and not cream cheese (american).

Thanks again, everyone, just "looking" at these yummy recipes are already making my pants tight.....

 

[themarquis]

are they formed into long snakes by hand and then into shapes? Or are they made with one of those cookie spritz things?

GF's italian gramma makes snakey ones and then makes them into tubes, circles, bowties, etc. Then they get a little bit of hard (confectioner's sugar) frosting and some colored sprinkles on top. Nobody can get the recipe because she just says, "there's no recipe ... you just *feel* the dough" (like she's having some kind of private sensual experience with the dough we don't really know).

GF makes some with the spritz, but I think they have amaretto, not vermouth. They're really good, though. I should have gf get on here and give the recipe.

 

[dg39]

are they formed into long snakes by hand and then into shapes? Or are they made with one of those cookie spritz things?

GF's italian gramma makes snakey ones and then makes them into tubes, circles, bowties, etc. Then they get a little bit of hard (confectioner's sugar) frosting and some colored sprinkles on top. Nobody can get the recipe because she just says, "there's no recipe ... you just *feel* the dough" (like she's having some kind of private sensual experience with the dough we don't really know).

GF makes some with the spritz, but I think they have amaretto, not vermouth. They're really good, though. I should have gf get on here and give the recipe.

Their made by hand, which I know is alot of work. But, I know what she means when she says there's no recipe. Alot of my grandmothers baking was all eye balling. A little of this, a little of that. Somehow, they always came out the same delicious way. They had good eyes and even a better memory.

 

[themarquis]

Their made by hand, which I know is alot of work. But, I know what she means when she says there's no recipe. Alot of my grandmothers baking was all eye balling. A little of this, a little of that. Somehow, they always came out the same delicious way. They had good eyes and even a better memory.

lol -- I actually totally get it, too, because that's how I cook! I think for GF's Grandma, a lot of the "feeling" process probably (though she's never put it this way) involves getting the dough to exactly the right level of moisture/kneadedness. Since this is going to vary a lot based on the weather and temperature (as any good pastry chef knows), you really do have to "feel" it -- no recipe could possibly tell you the "correct" amount of flour or water or kneading you need.

GF, on the other hand is a very practical minded sort of person and just wants the darn recipe, weather be darned!

The compromise we've reached is that the next time I'm in town, Grandma is going to get together with me and we're going to make the cookies (and her sauce, another "feeling" sort of thing) together. That should do the trick!

I do always think it's funny how much she (and probably italian grandmas in general) have this quasi-mystical thing about "feeling" the dough or sauce or whatever!

 

[disnut1149]

I've got a recipe for these that we call Christmas bows or ribbons:

Let me know if you want the recipe. It does not contain Vermouth. I've never seen one that does.

These are fried.

Hi
I made these cookies with my aunt a long time ago. She passed away and I never got the recipe. Your recipe looks just like them and they were fried. If it's not too much trouble, could I please have the recipe? My aunt used to twist them into bows, and we called them ribbons and bows. Thanks!!
Joan

 

[Sleepy]

I've got a recipe for these that we call Christmas bows or ribbons:

These are fried.

I've seen these around here. Popular around Christmas time. My neighbor made me some last year. Never seen them in shapes. JUst squares or strips. They are fried and have lots of powedered sugar on them and sprinkles and those little silver ball sprinkle things that are edible. Very greasy treat. Sorry, never asked what these treats are called.

 

[beattyfamily]

Hi
I made these cookies with my aunt a long time ago. She passed away and I never got the recipe. Your recipe looks just like them and they were fried. If it's not too much trouble, could I please have the recipe? My aunt used to twist them into bows, and we called them ribbons and bows. Thanks!!
Joan

Sure you can. But just know that it was written down by a Great Grandma who said a little bit of this and some of that.

Ingredients:

2 lbs All-purpose flour
1 level tsp. baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
8 jumbo eggs (or more)
1/2 cup (or a little more) pure olive oil
Olive Oil for frying

Directions:

Make a well with flour on a bread board and add baking powder and salt.
Break eggs in the wall and add oil.
Mix eggs and oil with hand until blended. Gradually, very gradually, gather the flour until all flour is absorbed. If dough is too dry add another egg until a medium dough is formed - not too dry.
Knead dough for a few minutes then cut it in fourths and knead each piece until they are smooth.
Place a small amount of flour around each piece and place in a covered bowl for about hour or so to handle easier. (let it 'rest')
Roll out each piece very very thin (you could also use a pasta maker to make them very thin) and cut bows and rosettes with a fancy pastry cutter and fry them immediately in hot olive oil in a frying pan until brown.
Put them on either paper towels or newspapers to absorb the extra oil.
When completely cooled, place in large container and slowly pour slightly warmed honey over each piece and then sprinkle with powdered sugar.
You can just serve with powdered sugar and omit the honey if you wish.
Will last weeks!

 

[monorailsilver]

I am drooling, drooling here.

We have tried to figure this one recipe from my grandmother's recipe book (which is an address book but with recipes in it) for meat cutter cookies but she has so many variations that we could never figure it out.

Those darn Italian grandma's taking their recipes to the grave!

Mmmmm....Ricotta Cheese pie...mmmmm....mmmm....mmmm....My dh hate it but then he didn't grow up Italian...mmmmm....mmmm...mmmm...I can feel the fat going to my hips.

Does anyone make Honey Clusters? I am not sure of the correct name for them as I always called them GiGi Beans. They are fried dough balls (like 1/2 inch or a bit smaller). Then once they cool, honey gets heated up & poured on them with the little round shots (non-pareils) & slivered almonds.

Those we get once a year at Christmas & the Ricotta Cheese pie is at Easter.

 

[beattyfamily]

I am drooling, drooling here.

We have tried to figure this one recipe from my grandmother's recipe book (which is an address book but with recipes in it) for meat cutter cookies but she has so many variations that we could never figure it out.

Those darn Italian grandma's taking their recipes to the grave!

Mmmmm....Ricotta Cheese pie...mmmmm....mmmm....mmmm....My dh hate it but then he didn't grow up Italian...mmmmm....mmmm...mmmm...I can feel the fat going to my hips.

Does anyone make Honey Clusters? I am not sure of the correct name for them as I always called them GiGi Beans. They are fried dough balls (like 1/2 inch or a bit smaller). Then once they cool, honey gets heated up & poured on them with the little round shots (non-pareils) & slivered almonds.
Those we get once a year at Christmas & the Ricotta Cheese pie is at Easter.

The are called Strufoli.

Yup! I've made them but they're just not as good as the bakery's so I just end up buying them. We've been having them for Easter since I was a little girl but now that I'm an adult, I head in to Boston to get them for Christmas too! The local Italian bakery only makes them for Easter.

Oh, and I LOVE Ricotta pie!! We have it for both Easter and Christmas if it's available.

Another thing I LOVE is Easter Bread. Yum! So sweet.

Strufoli:

 

[dg39]

I make batches and batches of these every X-mas. I know some people put alittle wine or liquor in there recipe, I don't. I put them one by one on a plastic plate, usually red, in the shape of a pyramid then cover it up with a clear red plastic wrap.

Everyone I know or anyone who comes to my door (almost) gets a plate full of these. LOL.....

I LOVE these...They're easy to make, but, making soooo many of these tiny balls can drive me crazy...

 

[Hannathy]

Those darn Italian grandma's taking their recipes to the grave!

It wasn't just those Italian Grandma's! Those French Grandma's were awful shifty to. They wanted to keep the best recipes to them selves so if someone asked for one they often "changed" it slightly before giving it to them so it didn't turn out quite right or exactly the way theirs did.(actually I think most nationalities in the early 1900's) You know not enough to really alter it but not exactly like theirs-and this included Daughters In Law. My Grandma did this and it wasn't till she lived with my Mom that my Mom learned some of the recipes she gave her weren't the way my Grandma was making them!

As far as the feel a lot of them didn't measure they just added, I remember watching her and stopping her so we could try to figure out how much she was adding so we could write it down. It is so sad they remembered all those recipes and I still look when I make a boxed cake mix.

To all the folks with the Italian Grandma's do you remember or do they still have cookie tables at big Italian weddings? I can remember as a kid going and their would be 4-5 tables piled high even on tiers with every kind of Italian cookie the Mother or some other relative could make, there were thousands.

 

[disnut1149]

Thanks Beattyfamily,
My aunt never measured anything. Just a handful of this and that. Your recipe sounds like the closest one to the one I remember. Even the way the dough is handled sounds familiar. I'm going to try to make these at Christmas. Thanks again
Joan

 

[Cindy's Mom]

It wasn't just those Italian Grandma's! Those French Grandma's were awful shifty to. They wanted to keep the best recipes to them selves so if someone asked for one they often "changed" it slightly before giving it to them so it didn't turn out quite right or exactly the way theirs did.(actually I think most nationalities in the early 1900's) You know not enough to really alter it but not exactly like theirs-and this included Daughters In Law. My Grandma did this and it wasn't till she lived with my Mom that my Mom learned some of the recipes she gave her weren't the way my Grandma was making them!

As far as the feel a lot of them didn't measure they just added, I remember watching her and stopping her so we could try to figure out how much she was adding so we could write it down. It is so sad they remembered all those recipes and I still look when I make a boxed cake mix.

To all the folks with the Italian Grandma's do you remember or do they still have cookie tables at big Italian weddings? I can remember as a kid going and their would be 4-5 tables piled high even on tiers with every kind of Italian cookie the Mother or some other relative could make, there were thousands.

The Greek gram's were shifty as well.

IMO, I have the best of both worlds in the culinary division. I'm 1/2 greek and 1/2 italian. And to answer your question, every wedding that I attend still has the homemade sweet table. Also, its not one person making the cookies, its all the aunts, great aunts, 1st cousins, 2nds cousins. EVERYONE. I was just at a wedding a couple weeks ago and this one was by far the best of the homemade goodies. I don't even know why the bride and groom PAID for a sweet table - the only pasteries/cookies that got eaten were the home make ones.

ETA: As far as remembering their recipes, I think (at least with my 2 grams), their families shipped them over to America so young that they never had a chance to learn how to write in their native tongue and too busy working in the USA to learn how to write in English. This was the case for both the Greek and Italian grandmothers. Their parents sent them over when one was 10 and the 13 and both had to live with family in New York and then eventually moved to Chicago. That's how it was back then.