Santa Lucia shortbread cookies are a traditional holiday treat from the Veneto region, usually prepared for the Feast of Santa Lucia on December 13th. These buttery and fragrant cookies are relatively easy to make, and while you cozy up and bake them, a decadent smell of vanilla will envelop your kitchen. The ingredients are simple: just flour, sugar, egg, vanilla and salt – so what are you waiting for? Let’s bake them together in a snap!
The legend of Santa Lucia
The Feast of Santa Lucia (Saint Lucy’s Day) is celebrated on December 13th and is a very important tradition among the provinces of Verona and Treviso (in Veneto) and as well as in Northern European countries. Children leave cookies for Santa Lucia on the kitchen table and in return she will bring a gift for the good ones and charcoal for the bad ones. Yes, I know this sounds familiar… 🙂 In the province of Verona, at many of the Christmas markets you can find these cookies in the shape of dolls, called Puoti in the regional Venetian dialect.
Santa Lucia was a martyr under the Emperor Diocletian in the 300 A.D. Legend tells that she belonged to an influential family in Sicily and was promised as a wife. However, when her mother fell sick she went to Catania to pray for her mother’s recovery, and on the way, the vision of Saint Agatha appeared to her and asked her to devote her life to the poorest. Upon her return home, Santa Lucia broke off the engagement and started bringing food to the Christians in the Catacombs. Her former fiancé discovered this and informed the emperor that she was a Christian. As a punishment, her eyes were torn out. In Medieval times, she was proclaimed a Saint and she is considered the protector of sight. In fact, the Latin version of her name, lux, means light.
Why you will love this recipe
- Quick and easy to make, they will be ready in less than 2 hours including resting time for the dough.
- These cookies smell heavenly and will MELT IN YOUR MOUTH!
- St. Lucia cookies are great to dip in milk, coffee, hot chocolate or sweet wine.
- They are a great gift idea.
- You can bake them with your kids as it is a fun activity during the Christmas holidays.
How to make Santa Lucia shortbread cookies
Start by sifting the flour and form a volcano shape on your countertop. Add the cold butter (cut into pieces) in the middle of the crater. Work the ingredients together very fast until they are crumbling together. My tip to prevent the butter from melting at contact with your hands is to keep your hands cold, either under running cold water or passing some ice cubes in your hands.
Add the sugar, egg yolks, vanilla and salt and continue working together all the ingredients until they are perfectly combined. Place the dough in the refrigerator and let it rest for 1 hour. This resting period is the secret to a perfect shortbread pastry that will be easy to roll and work.
Roll out the dough with a rolling pin to a ½ inch thickness and then cut as many forms as you can using Christmas cookie stamps. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper, place the cookies on top and cook them in the oven at 320°F (160°C) for 15 minutes until golden. My tip is to turn the tray clockwise halfway through the time in the oven, which will give the cookies a nice uniform golden aspect. Let the cookies cool on a baking rack. Once cool, cover them with powdered sugar and serve them.
Recipe variations
This recipe is the traditional one that I grew up with, but in other parts of Italy or in Northern Europe are usually made from leavened dough enriched with milk and raisins. I have never tasted this version and prefer to share the recipe from my tradition.
Looking for another Italian cookie recipe? Try the Cantucci, delectable almond cookies from Tuscany.
Storing suggestions
These cookies stay good for 3-4 days in air-tight container…of course, if they last that long! 🙂
Please let me know how you like the Santa Lucia Cookies in the comments! I really would love hearing from you, and I hope these cookies become part of your holiday celebration with your little ones.
A note on wine pairing
While these cookies are great with milk, hot chocolate or coffee, you can also enjoy them with something a bit stronger… I suggest pairing these cookies with a Recioto della Valpolicella from Verona. This red wine is sweet, bold and rich, with notes of chocolate that pair well with the buttery Santa Lucia cookies.
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour all-purpose
- 1/2 ⅛ cup butter chopped in small pieces
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 egg egg yolk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp salt
- 5 tbsp sugar powdered, to decorate
Instructions
- Start by sifting the flour and forming a volcano shape on your countertop.
- Add the butter, cut into pieces, in the middle of the crater. Work the ingredients together very fast until they are crumbling together (see notes).
- Add the sugar, the egg yolks, the vanilla and the salt and continue working together with all the ingredients until they are perfectly combined. Place the dough in the refrigerator and let it rest for 1 hour.
- Just before taking out the dough from the refrigerator, preheat the oven at 320°F (160°C).
- Roll out the dough with a rolling pin to a ½ inch thickness and then cut as many forms as you can using Christmas cookie stamps
- Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper, place the cookies on top and cook them in the oven for 15 minutes until golden (see notes).
- Let them cool down on baking rack. Once cold, cover them with icing sugar and serve them.
Notes
- Work the dough fast to avoid the butter to melt at contact with you hand. Try to keep your hands cold, wetting them under cold water or passing in your hands some ice cubes.
- In order for your cookies to have a nice uniform golden aspect, turn the tray clockwise halfway of the time in the oven.
- These cookies will last 3-4 days in an airtight container.
- You could do the recipe using a food processor, follow the same steps when adding the ingredients.
Nutrition
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