Julie Clark
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Ricotta Sugar Cookies
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Soft & sweet iced ricotta sugar cookies recipe that makes cute cookies for any holiday or occasion. Everyone loves these easy sugar cookies!
Ricotta Sugar Cookies are one of my favorite cookie recipes for just about any holiday or occasion. They are easy to mix up, require no refrigeration and can be sprinkled with any holiday sprinkles or color of your choice. You can even tint the frosting a special color if you’d like!
This traditional drop sugar cookie recipe is sometimes called Italian ricotta cookies. The look and flavor are very similar to a traditional sugar cookie. The ricotta cheese simply makes them rich and extra soft.
What are ricotta sugar cookies made of?
- Butter. Butter is central to this recipe, so use 100% pure butter.
- Sugar. Because these are similar to traditional sugar cookies, there’s no brown sugar. Only white sugar.
- Eggs. Room temperature eggs mix in best.
- Ricotta cheese. Use up leftover ricotta after making our no boil noodle lasagna and make a dessert! Our lasagna burgers and chocolate waffles also use ricotta cheese.
- Vanilla extract. Or almond extract would be great, too.
- All-purpose flour. For consistent results, use a scale to weigh out the flour. This will ensure your cookies are not dry.
- Baking soda and baking powder.
- Powdered sugar and heavy cream. Two ingredients that make a simple glaze icing.
How to Make Ricotta Sugar Cookies
It’s easiest to mix up the cookies with a stand mixer or hand mixer. This gets the best results as the ingredients will be perfectly blended for consistent results.
- Cream together the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
- Add in the room temperature eggs one at a time. Then mix in the ricotta and vanilla.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Then mix the flour mixture into wet ingredients.
- There’s no need to refrigerate the cookie dough! You can make the cookies as big as you’d like, but we use a small ice cream scoop or cookie scoop to make uniform cookies that area about 1 1/2″ in diameter. Drop the dough out onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Bake at 350ºF for 8-10 minutes. Be careful not to over bake the cookies so that they stay soft. They should not be brown.
Icing for Ricotta Cookies
You can whip up this easy powdered sugar frosting in just a few minutes. Mix it up right before you want to frost the ricotta sugar cookies because the frosting will get a “crust” over it as it sits. You can use whatever extract you like best..almond…rum…butter…but we like our homemade vanilla extract the best.
Sprinkle the sprinkles on the cookies right after frosting. The sprinkles won’t stick if the frosting has already set.
Recipe Variations
- Add lemon zest and make a simple lemon glaze. You can do the same with lime.
- Sprinkle holiday sprinkles on top for easy Christmas cookies.
- Add 1 cup mini chocolate chips and drizzle chocolate ganache on top for icing.
Storage Instructions
Because these ricotta sugar cookies are soft and have frosting, store them in a single layer in an airtight container. If you stack them they may stick together. Store at room temperature for up to 4 days.
They do freeze well, but again, freeze them in a single layer. Store in the freezer for up to 6 weeks.
Ricotta Sugar Cookies
Soft & sweet iced ricotta sugar cookie recipe that makes cute cookies for any holiday or occasion. Everyone loves these easy sugar cookies!
Servings 48
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 32 minutes
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 1 cup salted butter room temperature, 8 ounces
- 2 cups granulated sugar 400 grams
- 2 large eggs
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 10 grams
- 4 cups all-purpose flour 520 grams
- 1 teaspoon baking powder 5 grams
- 1 teaspoon baking soda 6 grams
For the glaze:
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar 195 grams
- 4-5 tablespoons heavy cream 60 grams
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 3 grams
- 1/2 cup sprinkles of any color
Instructions
Make the cookies:
- Preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or non-stick baking mats.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the softened butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then mix in the ricotta cheese and vanilla. 1 cup salted butter, 2 cups granulated sugar, 2 large eggs, 15 ounces ricotta cheese, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and baking soda. 4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda
- Mix the dry ingredients into the ricotta mixture.
- Use a small ice cream scoop to drop dough onto the cookie sheet.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the frosting:
- Place the powdered sugar in a medium-size bowl. Whisk in the heavy cream a tablespoon at a time until you reach the consistency you'd like your icing to be. 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, 4-5 tablespoons heavy cream
- Add the vanilla extract and mix well. ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Spoon the frosting on the top of the cookies. Immediately sprinkle with colored sprinkles.
- Allow the frosting to set before storing the cookies in a single layer in an airtight container.
Notes
- If you only have unsalted butter, add ¼ teaspoon salt.
Nutrition
Calories: 142kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 67mg | Potassium: 33mg | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 185IU | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 0.6mg
