Cookies Category

These crisp, hard cookies are traditionally made with bitter almonds. Dessert recipes sometimes call for them to be crumbled or ground. Amaretti de Sarnonno are considered to be the best.

Biscotti are cookies that are hard, dry, and intensely flavored--think of them as teething biscuits for adults. They're made by baking a loaf of cookie dough, slicing it, and then baking the slices a second time. They come in several flavors, including almond, chocolate, anise, and hazelnut. They can be stored for a long time in a dry, airtight container.

These crisp cookies are made with butter. They're sometimes crushed and use to make pie crusts.

Italians stuff these with a sweet filling that's usually based on ricotta cheese.

These are crisp chocolate cookies that are often crushed and used to make pie crusts.

These crisp, finger-length Italian cookies are flavored with anise. They're often stuffed with fruit or other fillings.

These lightly sweetened cookies are made with cornmeal. Look for them in Hispanic markets.

These addictive British cookies are similar to ginger snaps, but harder. They're often crushed into crumbs for pie crusts.

These hard cookies are flavored with ginger and molasses. They're sometimes added to sauerbraten or beef stews, or they're crushed into crumbs for pie crusts. The British version of this is the ginger nut, which is similar but very hard.

These are tongue depressor-sized sponge cakes that are used to make charlottes, tiramisu and other desserts. American ladyfingers are smaller and moister than their Italian counterparts. If substituting them for Italian savoiardi, use more and toast them briefly in the oven before using.

These are soft cookies that are made with either almonds or coconut.

These are rich, cake-like cookies that are shaped like shells. They're often flavored with lemon, orange, chocolate, or almonds.

This is similar to an almond-flavored biscotti, only smaller and softer. Look for it in Jewish markets.

These cookies have a creamy vanilla filling sandwiched between two chocolate wafers. They're addictive all by themselves, but cooks also crush them and use them to make pie crusts or ice cream toppings.

These crunchy cookies are made with puff pastry and sugar.

These come with or without a coating of sesame seeds.

These are made with flour, nuts, and butter, baked, and then rolled in powdered sugar.

These rich cookies are loaded with butter.

These vanilla cookies can be eaten as they are, but cooks often pound them into crumbs and use them to make pie crusts.