Befanini - La Befana Italian Cookies for Epiphany
Befanini are sweet little sugar cookies traditionally enjoyed in Italy in celebration of both the feast of the Epiphany and La Befana. They can be glazed and then decorated with colorful sprinkles or iced lightly and then sprinkled. Befanini are great for kids to have fun in the kitchen! They are best eaten the day that they are baked. They can be baked any time of the year, but traditionally, they are baked on January 5th, the night before Epiphany.
Servings: 25 - 30 cookies
Calories: 75kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour Italian 00, if you don’t have any, use 50/50 all-purpose or pastry flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 8 ounces butter cold, cut into cubes or slices
- 1 large/jumbo egg
- zest of one lemon or orange
- 1 teaspoon rum or lemon juice or orange juice
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
For the Glaze:
- 1 large/jumbo egg
- multi-colored sprinkles
For the Icing:
- 1 cup powdered/confectioners sugar
- 1 Tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons whole milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- add a little bit of lemon juice if you like lemon
Instructions
For the Cookies:
- In a large bowl of a food processor, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together until it looks a little bit like cornmeal.
- Add the egg, vanilla extract, butter, and lemon zest (optional: add rum, or if preferred, add a few splashes of lemon or orange juice)
- Pulse the ingredients together for about 1 minute or until the entire mixture begins to form a dough.
- Remove the dough from the bowl and form a complete ball with your hands.
- Wrap the ball of dough in cling plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour or until it is firm enough to roll.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll the dough ¼" inch thick on a lightly floured surface or wooden board, dusting the rolling pin with flour as well. Using cookie cutters, cut the dough into individual shapes. Place the cookies about ½" inch apart on the baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Repeat until all of the dough is used.*** If you prefer glazed cookies, you do this at this point BEFORE baking, see step #9.
- Bake the cookies until they are lightly golden and puffy, 8 - 10 minutes. Keep an eye on them and don't let the 'brown'. Allow the cookies to cool slightly on the baking sheets, and gently remove them with a spatula to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat the process with the remaining dough until all the cookies are baked. *** If you prefer iced cookies and not glazed, you add icing at this point AFTER baking, see step #10.
To Make the Glaze OR Icing (one or the other):
- To make the glaze: Lightly whisk the egg yolk with the milk. Using a small pastry brush, lightly brush the surface of the cookies with a bit of glaze and decorate them with the sprinkles. Glaze and decorate BEFORE baking.
- For Icing: Whisk powdered/confectioners sugar with milk, vanilla extract together and if preferred, a a dash of lemon juice. ICE the cookies AFTER baking and then decorate with the sprinkles.
Notes
Storing the Befanini:
- The cookies may be stored in an airtight container, layered between sheets of parchment paper, for up to 5 days.
- They may be frozen for 3 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 75kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 75mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 3g