Befanini cookies are delicious shortcrust pastries from the Tuscan tradition, decorated with colorful sugar sprinkles, in various Christmas-themed shapes.
This holiday rekindles many memories in me… but there’s one I hold dear in my heart.
My brother Massimiliano and I, when we were kids, loved this holiday. On the evening of January 5th, we would prepare a nice glass of wine and some cookies for La Befana by the kitchen hood, because our mom would tell us she was a poor old woman, cold, tired, and hungry.
So on the morning of January 6th, our first thought was to check if La Befana had enjoyed the breakfast. We were always very happy because the glass of wine was empty and a cookie had been eaten. Now that we are a bit older, we smile at this past moment. Because we imagine our Dad had to drink the wine and eat the cookie at night to make us happy. A joy that we keep close to our hearts.

See you soon, Susy

Difficulty: Very easy
Cost: Very cheap
Rest time: 30 Minutes
Preparation time: 20 Minutes
Portions: 30
Cooking methods: Oven
Cuisine: Italian

79.23 Kcal

calories per serving

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Energy 79.23 (Kcal)
Carbohydrates 11.88 (g) of which sugars 6.02 (g)
Proteins 1.41 (g)
Fat 3.16 (g) of which saturated 1.95 (g)of which unsaturated 1.21 (g)
Fibers 0.31 (g)
Sodium 18.17 (mg)

Indicative values for a portion of 1 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA^* and FoodData Central^** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.

^* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ^** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov

Ingredients for Befanini cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 orange zest
1 pinch salt
1 pinch baking powder
1 tablespoon colored sprinkles (for decoration)

You will need

Baking tray + 1 sheet of parchment paper
Cutter Cookie cutters

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Preparation of Befanini cookies

In the stand mixer, work the sugar and softened butter with the paddle attachment. Add the eggs, a pinch of salt and continue to mix, finally incorporate the flour, grated orange peel, and baking powder. Turn on the stand mixer at a high speed until you get a homogeneous dough that you wrap in plastic wrap and let it rest 30 minutes in the fridge.
After the resting time, take the dough and roll it out on a lightly floured surface and cut the cookies with Christmas cutters.
Then place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and brush with a beaten egg white and finally cover with colored sprinkles.
Place the tray in the fridge for about twenty minutes (this step is to ensure that the cookies do not deform during baking in the oven) finally bake in the oven at 350°F for about 10 minutes.
Once baked, let them cool well before serving and then Happy Epiphany to everyone.