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Italian wedding cookies are tender melt-in-your-mouth almond cookies rolled in a generous layer of powdered sugar. Toasted nuts, real butter, and a touch of almond extract give them a warm, delicate flavor with a soft, buttery crumb. They come together quickly and finish with that classic snowy coating that makes them a standout on any holiday cookie tray.
Here’s Why This Wedding Cookies Recipe Works
Toasted almonds for real depth: Roasting the nuts brings out a bold, warm flavor you just don’t get from pre-ground almonds.
Food-processor shortcut: Add everything to the bowl and pulse. That’s how easy it is to make the dough. No stand mixer, no creaming step.
Chill for clean shape: A long, cold rest (about 6 hours) keeps the cookies from spreading and helps them hold that neat, rounded look.
Two coats of sugar: The first layer melts slightly into the warm cookies, while the second clings on top for that classic powdery-white finish.
Ingredient Notes
Almonds: Raw almonds give you the most control, and a quick toast brings out their best flavor. For a shortcut, pre-roasted almonds work too, as long as they’re unsalted and unseasoned.
Powdered sugar: Also called confectioners sugar. Needed for both the dough and the final coating. The first roll melts in, the second creates the snowy finish and a sweet, thick layer.
All-purpose flour: Weighing the flour gives you the most consistent results. If you don’t have a scale, lightly spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off.
If you like these cookies, try my Mexican tea cookies which are a variation with pecans and a hint of cinnamon.
If you are putting together a cookie tray, add some nutella oatmeal bars and my whipped shortbread cookies to the mix.
Recipe Tips
Use whole almonds with skins: They roast more evenly and add a deeper, toastier flavor.
Don’t over-grind: Stop when the almonds reach a cornmeal-like texture. Any finer and they will turn into almond butter.
Chill thoroughly: The dough needs a full six hours to firm up and hydrate, so don’t rush this step.
Roll in sugar while warm: They’re fragile, but rolling warm cookies ensures the sugar melts just enough to cling.
Cool the almonds after toasting them: Warm nuts will release extra oils in the processor, which can make the dough greasy.
Let sugar rest between coats: After the first roll, give the cookies time to cool before the second roll. It prevents clumping and gives a smoother finish.
Storage: Add a small spoonful of powdered sugar to the storage container. It helps maintain that snowy coating over several days.
For more Italian cookies, try my Christmas pizzelle.
Your Questions, Answered
The texture will be different if you use almond flour. It is finer and drier, so the cookies won’t have the same rich, nutty flavor. If you use it, measure by weight and expect a slightly more delicate dough.
Yes. The long chill firms the butter, hydrates the flour, and prevents the cookies from spreading.
Absolutely, the dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days before baking.
You can still make these without a food processor. Use a blender to grind the almonds, pulsing in short bursts so you don’t overdo it. Then cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer, and mix in the remaining ingredients until the dough comes together.
Italian Powdered Sugar Cookies
These cookies bring a quiet kind of magic: buttery, nutty centers wrapped in a soft cloud of powdered sugar. They’re simple to make, dependable, and somehow always the first thing people reach for. Once they’ve had time to settle into that final sugar coat, they’re everything an Italian wedding cookie should be; delicate, sweet, and impossible to stop eating.
If you love warm, spiced cookies, try my German spice cookies or ginger almond cookies next.
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Italian Wedding Cookies
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Ingredients
for the cookies
- 1 cup almonds, 114 grams
- 1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks or 226 grams)
- 1 cup powdered sugar, 124 grams
- 2 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour, 280 grams
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract,
- ¾ teaspoons salt
Sugar coating
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar, 312 grams
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 350°. Place the almonds on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Stir half way through the baking time to ensure they are toasted evenly. Remove from oven and cool completely.
- Place the almonds in a food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse until they are finely ground to the consistency of cornmeal. Do not over-process them or you will have nut butter.
- Add the butter and powdered sugar. Pulse several times, scraping down the bowl as needed, until the mixture looks smooth and creamy.
- Add the flour, vanilla, almond extract, and salt. Process until the dough comes together in a clump, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours. (If you’d rather portion it first, roll the soft dough into 1½ teaspoon balls, place them on a tray, and chill for 6 hours).
- Preheat the oven to 375°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the 2 ½ cups of powdered sugar in a large bowl or pie plate and set aside. You will use this later to coat the cookies.
- Roll 1½-teaspoon portions of dough into small balls and place them about an inch apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the cookies are pale golden. Let them cool on the baking sheets for 3 to 5 minutes, just until they’re cool enough to handle but still warm.
- Transfer the warm cookies directly to the powdered sugar and roll them to cover completely with the sugar. Set aside to cool completely (the powdered sugar will melt into the hot cookies and look goopy).
- After completely cooled, roll the cookies once more in the powdered sugar.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Your recipe says Baking powder but never mentions amount or when to add
And you call for 2 cups of butter but you say only two sticks . Very confuding
Thanks for your comment! The recipe actually calls for 1 cup of butter, which equals 2 sticks. If you used the “adjust servings” option to double the recipe, the 1 cup would have scaled up to 2 cups, but the “2 sticks” note didn’t automatically adjust, that’s my mistake. I’ve fixed the recipe card now so the measurements update correctly across the whole recipe.
As for the baking powder, I’m a little confused because I don’t see it mentioned anywhere in the recipe (and it shouldn’t). These cookies don’t use any baking powder. If you can clarify where you see the mention of baking powder, I can help a bit more.
My dough is so hard coming out of the fridge, any tips?
If you let it sit out for 10 to 15 minutes, it will be easier to scoop.
Can the dough be in the fridge for longer than 6 hours?
Yes, if you wrap it tightly, you can store it in the fridge for up to 3 days.
You should try this with a tablespoon of Cardamom added!!!!!
Oh, cardamom sounds wonderful. Thanks for the comment.
It is not confusing if you read the recipe all the way through, like a baker should always do.
These are amazing??
Thanks for that feedback!! 🙂
I dont see whether you’re using salted or unsalted butter. Does it matter?
You can use either one. I know most bakers will say you should always use unsalted butter so you can control the amount of salt in recipes but I almost always use salted butter. I have found that the small amount of salt that is in salted butter never makes my baked goods too salty. It really comes down to a matter of personal taste. I prefer the slight edge that salted butter gives but these taste great with unsalted butter as well. Thanks for your question.
These cookies look amazing! I love Italian wedding cookies!
Natalie, these are soooo addictive! They are an absolute favorite!
These cookies look absolutely delicious! Loving the snow – vibe from rolling them in powdered sugar! ?❄️
Thanks, they do look like little snowballs and I tend to make them mostly during the Christmas season but they are soo good any time of year.
This is SOOOO frustrating. I put WAY to much powdered sugar in because the actual measurements weren’t until 6 miles down on the bottom. It never said to put aside sugar for rolling. I ruined the whole thing. 4 cubes of butter down to two. Thank you!
Thanks for your feedback. I am not exactly sure what you mean and I would appreciate some help so I can make this more clear. I have a printable recipe card at the bottom of the post with all the ingredients and measurements. The recipe has the extra powdered sugar needed for coating listed separately. I wrote the recipe card like that so I could avoid people making the mistake of adding all the powdered sugar at once. I did list the ingredients at the top of the post without the measurements to give readers an idea of what they need for a shopping list but perhaps that is what caused the confusion. Were you trying to make the recipe without looking at the recipe card at the bottom of the post? Or is the recipe card confusing to read? Thanks for your help