One of Nicole’s favorite Italian desserts to share is the famous Ciambelline al Vino—better known as the rustic Italian wine cookie with anise! These cookies are so easy to make that you hardly even need a scale or special kitchen tools.
The precise origins of Ciambelline al Vino (wine cookies or little wine rings in Italian) are as rich and varied as the regions of Italy itself. These traditional cookies are rooted in the rural, agricultural communities of Lazio and central Italy, where wine was abundant and nothing in the pantry went to waste. They likely date back centuries, created as a thrifty but delicious way to use leftover wine with flour, sugar, and oil.
How to Make Italian Wine Cookies with Anise (Watch the Video Recipe!)
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Nicole’s Recipe for Ciambelline al Vino
Nicole prepares her Italian wine cookies with anise using white wine and a splash of Sambuca. The Sambuca not only enhances the anise flavor, but it can also be used instead of anise seeds for anyone who loves the licorice taste but finds the seeds difficult to digest. This gives the cookies their signature aroma and makes them especially irresistible.
These cookies are characteristic of Lazio—where they are often called ‘mbriachelle—but you’ll find variations throughout Italy. Some bakers add lemon or orange zest, others add fennel seeds or nuts, and sometimes the wine is replaced entirely with anise liqueur. However you make them, these rustic rings are always crisp, fragrant, and perfect for dunking in coffee or wine.
More Italian Dessert Recipes
Italian Wine Cookies with Anise Recipe: Ciambelline al Vino
Equipment
- 1 measuring cup
Ingredients
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 7 tbsp white wine or an anise liquor like Sambuca
- ½ cup oil vegetable or sunflower
- 4 cups flour cake or all purpose
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp anise seeds optional
- 1 pinch fine salt
- 3 tbsp sambuca liquor or, more white wine
Instructions
- Mix all of the ingredients together.2 tsp baking powder, 7 tbsp white wine, ½ cup oil, 4 cups flour, ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- Knead them briefly just until you have created a smooth dough that is not sticky— a dough similar to gnocchi.
- Stretch pieces of the pasta into ropes (15-20 g a cookie). The rope for each cookie should be 10-12 cm (about 4"). Wrap those pieces like a ring around your finger to close them.
- Pass each 'ring' you've created in a bit of granulated sugar.
- Bake in a static oven at 350° F (180° C) for 20-25 minutes until golden. Or, bake in an air fryer on 'bake' setting (no parchment) at 320°F / 160°C for about 15 minutes.