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Arts & Entertainment

Shannon Rosenberg's Anginetti Cookies are a Family Favorite

These cookies have a sweet lemon flavor and are perfect for holiday celebrations.

Shannon Rosenberg, a 35-year-old Brentwood resident, won with her classic Anginetti cookie recipe that is both easy and fun to make.

The history of this particular cookie spans back to Rosenberg's childhood in Canada, where she lived in a mostly Italian neighborhood.

"It was all about food," Rosenberg said. "My grandparents lived across the street from a bread bakery. I fell in love with the Italian food in the neighborhood." 

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This love for food was apparent, and stemmed from her grandparents' heavy involvement in neighborhood cookie swaps. 

"Christmas every year would yield platters of food and cookies," Rosenberg said. 

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She recalled a particular lemon cookie, which was her favorite.

"I always cheered when I saw my favorite cookies. I had no idea what they were but they were lemon flavored and iced," Rosenberg said. 

Years later, Rosenberg tried to recreate her neighbor's lemon cookies. Piecing together a few different recipes, she was able to come close to the original.

With simple ingredients and a deliciously sweet lemon frosting, it's no wonder the cookie recipe is popular in Rosenberg's family.

"They are definitely a family favorite," Rosenberg said. "I get requests for them from people who remember them from my holiday cookie tray that I made two years ago!"

Here's what you'll need for the perfect cookie:

Cookies
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
3 large eggs (or egg replacer)
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt

Frosting
3 cups confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon lemon extract

You can find all of these ingredients at , , or .

Start off by preheating your oven to 350 degrees. Begin preparing the cookies by creaming together the sugar and shortening. Although butter-flavored shortening could be used in a pinch, Rosenberg recommends using plain shortening.

Add eggs and lemon extract and beat well. Next, add flour, baking powder and salt. Mix well; you'll know the dough is ready when it becomes sticky and soft.

Drop dough onto a lightly-greased cookie sheet, baking stone or silicone mat. Rosenberg recommends using a small cookie scoop to drop the dough; a small spoon would also work. Space the cookies about two inches apart on the baking sheet.

Bake the cookies for 12 to 15 minutes, or until firm and lightly brown. Remove the cookies from the baking sheet and allow to cool completely.

While the cookies are cooling, get to work on the frosting. Combine the confectioner's sugar with water and lemon extract and mix until smooth.

When the cookies have cooled completely, frost the tops of each cookie with a metal spatula or butter knife.

According to Rosenberg, the cookies can be baked ahead of time and stored in the freezer.

"The cookies last quite a long time when stored in an airtight container because of the shortening," Rosenberg said. 

Editor's note: Want to share your favorite family recipe? Submit it to editor Ryan Martin at ryan.martin@patch.com and we'll post it on the site! Be sure to include your name, age and where you're from.

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