Today’s sweet recipe: Abruzzo fennel cookies.

When I was little, my grandmother would get ready on Saturday morning, take the bus from the town square and go to the city market. We were all happy because we knew she would bring back something delicious. And indeed, she would arrive home with her bag of Abruzzo fennel cookies!
In Abruzzo, you will find bags with 5 or 6 fennel cookies on the counter of any bakery. Soft and fragrant, they are perfect for dunking into a cup of foamy milk or a steaming cup of tea. They are large disc-shaped cookies sprinkled with granulated sugar before baking.
This is my grandmother’s version that my older sister found in an old recipe notebook. They always made them together, as well as almond sweets.

These cookies are also part of my cookie recipe collection that I recommend saving, as it is continuously updated.

Now let’s see, step by step, how to make them.

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Ingredients for about 20 fennel cookies

5 eggs
1.25 cups sugar
2.75 cups all-purpose flour
0.4 cups vegetable oil
1 packet baking powder
1 lemon (zest)
1 pinch salt
as needed sugar (for sprinkling)

Tools

1 Stand Mixer
1 Spatula
1 Baking Tray
1 Parchment Paper

Let’s make Abruzzo fennel cookies together

Break the eggs and separate the yolks from the whites, then beat the whites until stiff peaks form, adding a pinch of salt. Once beaten, set them aside. In a bowl, combine the yolks with the sugar and mix until a frothy consistency is achieved.
At this point, add the oil and lemon zest, mix again, then add the sifted flour and baking powder. Mix all the ingredients together; at this point, the mixture will appear very dry.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Gently fold the previously beaten egg whites into the mixture, using motions from top to bottom to avoid deflating them, using a spatula. Now the dough is ready.
Take a baking tray lined with parchment paper and place a spoonful of dough to form the cookies. Be careful to space them out as they will spread, then sprinkle granulated sugar over each cookie.
Shape the cookies just before baking to prevent them from spreading too much while waiting for the oven to heat.
Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for 10-12 minutes, they should be slightly golden on the surface.
Once baked, let them cool by lifting them slightly or transferring them to a rack.
Now the Abruzzo fennel cookies are ready to be dipped into a nice cup of hot, foamy milk. But first, take a picture of them and post it on social media tagging me (una riccia che pasticcia on Instagram and Facebook) and let me know how many you ate.