Pizzelle (Anise Waffle Cookies)

Nov 3, 2026 · By VanillaGoods

Baking Cookies bars Vanilla: Extract Easy

Delicate, crisp lattice-patterned cookies cooked in a hot iron and flavored with anise. Makes 18 cookies in about 1 hr 10 min.

Prep 20 min

Cook 20 min

Cooling 30 min

Total 1 hr 10 min

Yield 18 cookies

Ingredients

Adjust yield

1 ¾ cups (220 g)all-purpose flour
1 ½ tspbaking powder
¼ tspsalt
3 (150 g)eggs
¾ cup (150 g)sugar
1 ½ tspvanilla extract
1 ½ tspanise extract
½ cup (115 g)melted butter, cooled
2 tbsppowdered sugar

Baking tools for this recipe

Convert to grams Scale it Change the pan

Instructions

Preheat the pizzelle iron.
Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt.
Whisk the eggs, sugar, vanilla and anise until slightly foamy.
Stir in the flour and then the melted butter until smooth, but do not overmix.
Lightly grease the iron and add about 2 tablespoons of batter to each mold. Close and cook about 1 minute until golden.
Cool the cookies flat on a rack so they crisp. Dust with powdered sugar.

Tips

Mix gently so cookies stay tender.
Cool flat; they crisp as they cool.
Cooked-hot pizzelle can be rolled into cones.
Good with espresso.

Made this?

Log it to keep your bakes, ratings and notes together in My Kitchen.

Be the first to share one.

Recipe FAQ

How long does it take to make pizzelle (anise waffle cookies)?

Plan on 20 minutes of prep and 20 minutes of cooking, plus 30 minutes to chill. The recipe makes 18 cookies.

How should I store pizzelle (anise waffle cookies)?

Store airtight at room temperature up to 2 weeks.

Can I make pizzelle (anise waffle cookies) ahead?

It is at its best the day it is made; prepare it a few hours before serving.

Can I use a different form of vanilla?

Yes. This recipe uses 1.5 tsp vanilla extract. Each teaspoon of pure vanilla extract can be swapped for 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste, the seeds of half a vanilla bean, or 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla powder. Paste and seeds add the classic dark specks.

Thin waffle cookies from Abruzzo, where they are called ferratelle after the iron used to cook them. Serve it with espresso.

Estimated · per serving

Nutrition

Per serving = 1 of 18 servings this recipe makes.

140 Calories / serving

6.1g Fat

18.8g Carbs

2.3g Protein

9.5g Sugar

Whole recipe (18 servings): ~2520 cal · 110g fat · 338g carbs · 41g protein · 171g sugar

Estimated values per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not verified Nutrition Facts; actual values vary with brands, measurements, and preparation.