Lard Anise Cookies

Lard anise cookies are an Italian-American holiday cookie that hits two notes most modern baking has forgotten about: the unmatched melt-in-mouth tenderness of pure lard and the warm licorice perfume of whole anise seeds. Lard sounds old-fashioned, but it produces a flakier, more delicate crumb than any butter or shortening can match in a cookie like this.

A full tablespoon of anise seeds (the recipe lists star anise but the small whole seeds work better here) gets creamed into the dough so each bite carries the perfume. Don’t substitute extract, the whole seeds give the texture and visual that defines these cookies.

Shape into hand-rolled ropes that get crossed at the ends to spell out letters, or slice from a chilled log for round cookies. The rope shape is traditional and fun for kids.

Pro Tips

• Chill the dough thoroughly before rolling. Warm lard dough sticks badly to the work surface.
• Don’t grease the baking sheets. The cookies have plenty of fat to release on their own.
• Edges should be just golden, not brown all over, for the right tender bite
• Let cool completely on racks. The cookies firm up as they cool to room temperature.
• Store in airtight tins for up to 2 weeks. The flavor deepens after a day.

Variations

• Sub butter or vegetable shortening for the lard if needed. Texture changes but still good.
• Brush warm cookies with a thin lemon-water glaze for extra sweetness and shine
• Add 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds along with the anise for extra herbal complexity