A very old fashioned cookie that I've always loved, Pizzelle Italian Waffle Cookies are typically flavored with anise, orange or vanilla.
These are cookies of my youth and I haven't had any that were homemade in years. I remember vividly that my Grandma Bathe made Pizzelle Italian Waffle Cookies using an old fashioned Pizzelle Iron like I've shown in this post but it was not typical for her. Her German/Scandinavian roots were more evident in her cooking and baking.
Her cookies included ones more traditional to her background like Pfeffernusse, Springerle, and the ones my family has been making every Christmas since before I was born, these Pecan Butter Balls (nope, they are not Mexican or Russian!)
Now I could weave a tale of how I had to dig through my family treasures to find her Pizzelle Iron and recreate those memories exactly but, well, I can't, not this time. This post came about with the help of my sweet neighbor Diane. She decided to make dozens and dozens (actually bakers dozens) of Pizzelles and sell them to neighbors in our development. A notice on Facebook and the woman was off to the races.
I ordered two batches, one Cinnamon and one Orange, thinking I had always had Anise and could live without it. And then I missed it of course. I planned to hold onto them for when my daughter was over and I was good, I only ate one of them.
Then I had this brainiac idea that I could share Diane's recipe and this gorgeous artifact of hers and get the word out to more people about these light, crisp, and absolutely wonderful cookies filled with memories of my Grandma's house.
Diane did not fail me; she brought over her Grandmother's Pizzelle Iron which she estimates is at least 75 years old and the reminder of the love that had to go into the making of these cookies all those many years ago came flooding back.
I remember Grandma making them production style too...but this was truly a labor of love; standing over a hot stove for hours to make stacks and stacks for neighbors and friends for the holidays.
These irons are heavy with engraved plates; the handles have a clamp to hold them together and they were filled with dough and then held over a stove to 'bake' the Pizzelles. It's a nice memory to have but I'm with Diane...fast forward and today Diane has an electric Pizzelle Waffle Iron.
I need another appliance like I need a hole in the head, but no matter mine is ordered and on the way...I have neighbors who will love them too! Until then; my photos are of the ones Diane made, I hope I do as well as she did; maybe my daughter and I can make our own dozens of Pizzelle Italian Waffle Cookies!
While I usually provide a link to Amazon for a product that I have tried and would suggest, this time I can't do that because I found the best price at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I even bought the annual plan that gives me a discount and free shipping on EVERY order...I might be able to break some of my Amazon habit and give more business to another vendor...yay!
When I was setting up my studio for photos, I thought a cup of hot chocolate would be a good idea. When I looked into my pantry for cocoa I found a couple of little jars of this Nocciolata Crema di Cacao ( affiliate link). You might recognize chocolate hazelnut paste as the more well known Nutella?
This is an original Italian version and I thought..what could be better with Pizzelle Italian Waffle Cookies than a hot chocolate make with Italian chocolate hazelnut spread. Truth be told I've never been a fan of Nutella, probably why these little jars from a food basket gift had been in the pantry for a couple of months.
I decided to use them and what a revelation...if you are one of the minority like me and not fond of Nutella, you need to try the real deal; this stuff is DELICIOUS and made the best doggone cup of hot chocolate ever. I mean it. Amazing.
The cookies can be served with our without powdered sugar, the flavor is marginally changed but I simply like the way it looks and well, not to go on and on too much, but it is what Grandma did!
A day later Diane needed some rum for cookies...you know I have plenty of that so of course I offered her enough for a couple of batches. Bless her heart...she brought me the missing piece, the anise cookies I wished I had ordered; now I'm truly in heaven. I have every intention of scheduling this post, making more of that hot chocolate and ensconcing myself in front of ' The Pack ' on Amazon Prime (DOGS!) and enjoying the experience of cute plus adventure on TV with my new favorite and delicious treat.
PIN IT! 'Pizzelle Italian Waffle Cookies'
