Italian Christmas Cookies

Preparation: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Mix wet ingredients: In a large bowl, cream together 1 cup butter and 2 cups sugar. Then mix in the 2 eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla and 15 ounces ricotta cheese.

Add dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, mix together 4 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt. Then add to the wet ingredients and mix just until combined. Chill dough at least 30 minutes, up to 24 hours.

Drop cookies: Using a spoon or small-medium cookie scoop, drop the dough onto the cookie sheet. Use another spoon or your finger to help the dough onto the pan.

Bake cookies: Bake for 10 minutes, or until the bottoms get lightly golden brown and the middle is set (no longer wet looking). Allow to sit on the pan for 2 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack, so the bottoms don’t over brown.

Make icing: Whisk together 2 cups powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon almond extract, 1 pinch salt and 3 Tablespoons cream or milk until smooth. If icing is thick, add the last Tablespoon of milk to thin it out.

Frost cookies: Spoon the icing over the cookies, and top with sprinkles while the icing is still wet.