The Chocolate Italian Meatball Cookie is a quintessential Christmas cookie!
The meatball cookie is ‘the cookie’ that harks back to Christmases of yesteryear.
For us, the meatball cookie was to Christmas what turkey is to Thanksgiving and colored eggs are to Easter.
Mema, my maternal gram, was a wizardess in her teeny-tiny galley kitchen everyday, but even more so at the holidays. Memories of her chocolate meatball cookies, her vanilla meatball cookies, her ‘pink’ sweets, her bon-bons…ahhhh – these are the cookies that come first to mind when I reminisce about the holidays of long ago…
So when I was invited to participate in the Sweetest Season Cookie Exchange with a bunch of blogger friends, it didn’t take me long to figure out that this was the cookie I needed to share.
Here’s the thing….not only are they delicious, they’re addicting!
Even when we thought we couldn’t eat one more bite, there was a Christmas <—- (a Christmas, I say it as if it happened only once…) that my sister and I literally ate an entire plate or, I don’t know, maybe it was a platter (ahem), a small platter, of Mema’s pink and white meatball cookies. We must have been pre-teen-ish, and thought we could resist the temptation, especially after a meal of pasta and meatballs and cutlets…you get the picture…however the universe had a different plan for us.
Was our need for our Mema’s cookies satiated? You bet! Did we have any regrets? Gosh no. I still remember looking across the table at my sister, crumbs falling from our faces, with shared expressions of disbelief mixed with utter joy…
Now you might be thinking, “Did these two eat all the cookies?” Of course not – they were made by an Italian grandma…there were plenty more where they came from!
Now here’s the thing about this recipe…I’ve added no clove. I know, I know. If you’re a fan of the clove flavor in the traditional cookie – by all means, add it. However, I love the quiet, just enough spice that using cinnamon, nutmeg and Allspice offers. It’s enough and it’s spectacular. I also used shortening versus butter to give it more of the lift that you want in a meatball cookie. These meatball cookies puff up perfectly and maintain a tender crumb all the way through to the last bite.
And the chocolate? Oh yeah, it’s in there. In the form of cocoa and wait for it………….chocolate chips!
I hope you’ll check out the selection of fabulous holiday cookies included in the Sweetest Season Cookie Exchange by following the hashtag #sweetestseasoncookies on social media! There’s something for everyone…
Drop cookies, hand-formed cookies, bar cookies, brownies, sandwich cookies, cutouts, shaped cookies, no-bake cookies… See what I’m saying?
Buon Appetito!
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Chocolate Italian Meatball Cookies
- Category: Dessert
Description
The Chocolate Italian Meatball Cookie is quintessential Christmas!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 1/4 cups butter flavored shortening
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup 1% milk
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 5 cups All-Purpose flour
- 5 tsp. baking powder
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp ground nutmeg
- 1 Tbsp Allspice
- 3/4 cup Hershey cocoa
- 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
- 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- Holiday colored sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- In a large mixing bowl cream sugar and shortening.
- Add eggs one at a time, slowly mixing after each addition.
- Add milk and vanilla and mix again.
- Add dry ingredients. Mix well.
- Add nuts and chocolate chips and mix.
- Roll the dough into meatball sized balls (or use a small ice cream scoop).
- Place on parchment lined cookie sheets. 12 per sheet.
- Bake for 13 – 15 minutes.
- Cool on racks.
- In the meantime prepare glaze.
- In a small bowl combine powdered sugar, milk and vanilla.
- When cookies are cool, dunk in glaze and place them back on racks.
- Sprinkle with colored sprinkles and let dry.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Cooking with Nonna
CIAO!
Can I substitute butter for shortening?
Hi Toni, The short answer is yes. However, it could result in a flatter cookie with a denser texture. I have never done it – so I can’t speak from experience… Happy Holidays!
How many cookies does this recipe make?
It made roughly 60 cookies (depending on the size of your scoop).
I’m sure if a plate of these was sitting in front of me, they wouldn’t last long either!! These are everything. Chocolate, warm spices and that drizzle! This is holiday baking!!
Ohhh, what pre-teens can get away with! This is a favorite, for so many reasons! Thank you, Cathy! 🙂
What a great holiday tradition! I’ve never heard of meatball cookies, but can tell they’d be a hit with my family, too.
Thank you, Megan!
Amazing cookies! Just like Nona used to make🥰 Thanks so much for sharing!!
Music to my ears! Thank YOU!!
I have never heard of these kind of cookies but I’m totally loving it! And what a wonderful story – I love how recipes become an extension our a family’s history. And for me, the holidays are all about family and tradition – what a lovely one your family has 🙂 I can’t wait to give these a try!
Thank you, Kathleen! Thankfully, I can honestly say that eating a plateful has not become a tradition, but the meatballs have certainly made a showing through the years! 🙂
So many memories of these! I’ve never heard them called meatball cookies (so cute though). We called them the Sicilian name, “toto,” with the accent on the second syllable. I understand completely about eliminating the cloves, since that can be a strong flavor, on top of the other warm spices. I look forward to trying your version, Annie!
So many names, so little time! 😉 Thank you, Andrea!! 🙂
I’ve never heard of a meatball cookie before, and I loved the glimpse into your family holiday traditions! These look gorgeous and so festive + double chocolate is always good in my book!
Thank you, Kari! The double chocolate is a new twist. In researching I discovered the addition of chips and thought – oh yes! 🙂