Wine cookies are a type of Italian cookie that is very easy to make, with simple ingredients. They are also known as Mostaccioli o Ciambelline al vino in Italian.
They are traditionally made with grape must, red wine, or white wine. The result is a light, crunchy, and sweet wine cookie that can be enjoyed as it is, or dipped in your favorite red wine.
What are wine cookies?
Wine cookies are typically eaten during winter and the Christmas period in Italy, generally at the end of a meal.
In some Italian homes, these ciambelline al vino are even eaten as a breakfast or as a snack in the middle of the afternoon. If you eat them after a meal, they go well with a glass of sweet wine or red wine.
In Italy, the cookies and biscuits are typically served on an abundant tray of cookies and accompanied with other types of Italian sweets.
We highly recommend you try our other delicious cookies, such as Orange Almond Cookies, Almond Biscotti, and Amaretti.
They are all perfect for winter, the holiday season, or at any time when you feel like a sweet treat with an Italian twist.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Flour: I use all-purpose flour or cake flour for this recipe. You can replace it with a gluten-free flour mix or with spelt flour.
- Sugar: white sugar or brown sugar.
- Wine: I like to use red wine, but this cookies can be also made with white wine, sweet wine, and even grape must.
- Raisins
- Anise: you can use anise powder or anise seeds. It's optional.
- Vegetable oil: I like to use sunflower seed oil but any other neutral vegetable oil would work (canola oil, peanut oil, etc). No olive oil for this recipe.
- Baking powder: to make the cookies friable and lighter.
How to make wine cookies
Preheat the oven to 360F or 180C. To a small bowl, add wine, raisins, and anise seeds. Soak for 15 minutes.
To a larger bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking powder and mix well with a whisk.
Add vegetable oil, wine, raisins, and anise seeds and mix together with a fork or spatula till you have a dough ball.
Knead with your hands for 1 minute to make it smooth. Don't over-knead.
Take small pieces of the dough, with the palm of your hands roll the dough pieces on your worktop, forming small snake-shaped dough pieces.
Cut the snakes in 2-inch / 5cm pieces, give it an extra roll, then bring the two extremities together, creating a small ring.
Transfer onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 360F or 180C.
Let cool down, then arrange on a serving platter. Dust with powdered sugar or dip them upside down first in water, then in regular white granulated sugar.
Storage
These wine cookies are best stored in an air-tight container (glass jar or tin box) in a dry and shaded corner of your kitchen. If stored properly, they keep for up to two weeks.
Dinner Ideas
Did you know that we develop our recipes to go together for a complete dinner meal plan? Serve these wine cookies as light and crunchy dessert with:
Vegan creamy pasta - Boscaiola style - as a main course
Fennel and orange salad as a light and refreshing side dish
Recipe
Wine Cookies - Italian Recipe
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons raisins
- 2 teaspoons anise seeds or anise powder (optional)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ⅓ cup wine red or white
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 360F or 180C. To a small bowl, add wine, raisins, and anise seeds. Soak for 15 minutes.
- To a larger bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking powder and mix with a whisk.
- Add vegetable oil, wine, raisins, and anise seeds and mix together with a fork or spatula till you have a dough ball.
- Knead with your hands for 1 minute to make it smooth. Don't over-knead.
- Take small pieces of the dough, with the palm of your hands roll the dough pieces on your worktop, forming small snake-shaped dough pieces.
- Cut the snakes in 2-inch / 5cm pieces, give it an extra roll, then bring the two extremities together, creating a small ring.
- Transfer onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 360F or 180C.
- Let cool down, then arrange on a serving platter. Dust with powdered sugar or dip them upside down first in water, then in regular white granulated sugar.
Video Recipe
Nutritional Values
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Remina
They are absolutely amazing. I've swapped raisins for lemon extract and that was the only thing I changed. I can taste anise and wine and lemon... omg. They are so easy to make as well. Thank you so much for this recipe ^^
Nico
So happy you like them Remina 🙂 Thanks for the message!