Every year at Easter my Sicilian Nonna would make these cookies for all 10 grandchildren. She’d go house to house to deliver them to all of us. She’d make them in different shapes like “bunnies” with raisins for eyes for the kids and then some shaped like a “basket” or simple round ones she called a “nest”.  They were simple and just sweet enough.  I loved scraping the cookie off the egg shell with my teeth!– I wanted every last bit before I shelled the egg!

So here is the recipe.  I hope you start a tradition of your own or are able to revive one you knew yourself but never had a recipe!

These are great as they are or with a nice cappuccino to dunk the bigger pieces in that you break off the egg!  What a GREAT breakfast!

Pupa cu L’Ova  aka-Cuddura   (Italian Easter Egg Cookies)

3/4 lb butter

5-6 eggs (if using 6 eggs use less milk)

2 1/2 - 3 cups sugar

2 Tbsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

8-9 cups flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 -2 cups milk

(1 egg yolk + 2 Tbsp milk as egg wash over cookies to make shiny!)

This is a very easy recipe and just plain fun to make!

Mix the butter and sugar.  Then add the eggs one at a time.  Add the vanilla.

Mix the dry ingredients together then add alternating with just enough milk till all the flour mix is done and you have a nice not too sticky dough.

Form the dough around raw eggs(they will cook in the oven!) with one larger “rope” of dough then take a little piece and circle the top around the egg for a nice little frame.  Of course this is how my Nonna did it.  Yours may have done it differently and please do it your way!  There are so many shapes and designs you can make!

To make the bunnies just overlap the “rope” at the top to make ears.  Pretty simple.  If you look at the picture you can see the detail. To make a basket just make a “handle” on the round shape!

Now take one egg yolk and mix with spoonfuls of milk and brush over the cookie for a little shine!

Decorate with sprinkles or raisins or colored sugar(it will stick to the egg wash!)… follow your own families traditions or make your own!

Baking time depends on size of cookies, but I usually go 350 for a good 20-25 minutes but once they are golden on the bottom then they are done.  You don’t want them too hard. So please test your oven and come up with your own exact time!

And YES the egg cooks in the oven!

Enjoy and please write me if you make them!  I want to know how they turn out!

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