I think just about everyone in Upstate New York, especially in the Utica, New York area, makes these cookies for Christmas and wedding trays.
These chocolate cookies have a sweet chocolate spiced flavor and a perfect fall-flavored cookie.
Decorated with a delicious white homemade easy frosting, it adds just the right blanket of snowy feel to bring a feeling of winter comfort to the cookie tray.
Of course, being such a popular cookie on Italian wedding trays and local bakeries, these were referred to as meatball cookies, maybe a little more familiar name for you.
Like most kids back in the 1960s we seem to all have different names for our Italian foods in every household.
You may even have named them something different like frosted chocolate balls, spiced chocolate cookies or maybe just those chocolate chocolate chip cinnamon balls.
These cookies ended up being the most popular for my kids growing up and their favorites.
We also make 24 different kinds every year and still do along with Girl Scout Copycat Cookies and a few other favorite childhood cookies!
It doesn't matter who or what you named these, they are a must-make and wonderful memory of my childhood cooking and baking days at Christmas time.
This recipe is simple, just scroll down to the recipe card and print it off.
Homemade Italian Chocolate Spice Cookies
Throughout the years, this vintage recipe has been given many names, you may also know it as "Chocolate Meatball Cookies", they are dark with chocolate chips with fall spices. Grandma always called them chocolate spice cookies or spice balls cookies.
If I had to guess, I would say this recipe is over 100 years old since Grandma and Mom made these since I was a little girl year after year around 1960 and Grandma was already in her late 80s.
These cookies were another staple when a family member was getting married and always on the wedding cookies tray, but a must make around the Christmas holiday, it was through the generations every child's favorite including my own two sons.
Ingredients That Go into Grandma's Chocolate Spice Cookies
- butter
- sugar
- cream cheese room temperature (softened)
- evaporated milk
- vanilla extract
- flour
- baking powder
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg
Grandma's Italian Chocolate Spice Cookies Pin for later
Cherish The Moments
How fast the time goes by, and these by far are the hardest of posts to write, tears of the happiest days and times gone by, but life goes on.
We all continue making new memories to share through our lives through the foods we share with our families and friends.
Traditional Cookies Passed Down for Generations
Great moments in time last forever through our cooking and sharing recipes.
Those tastes are embedded in our memories forever from our childhoods long into adulthood and that's what makes these holidays so special.
Someone else somewhere has made the same kind of memories that last forever, so this plain and simple cookie became a very special part of our Christmas baking and will for years to come.
Grandma's Italian Chocolate Spice Cookies are a delicious cookie to start your own family traditions and in our family keep her memory alive as we reminisce on the fond memories of baking together.
A vintage classic cookie that never gets old.
Yield: 32
Grandma's Italian Chocolate Spice Cookies
This is a vintage chocolate spice cookie referred to meatball cookies on an Italian Wedding Tray or during the Christmas Holiday season. The cookie is iced with white thick frosting and laced with cinnamon spice.
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 25 Min
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter
- 1 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 - 8-ounce package of cream cheese room temperature (softened)
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 cups flour
- 5 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Cream the butter and sugar together.
- Add softened cream cheese.
- Add all dry ingredients and alternate with the 1 cup of evaporated milk.
- After you have blended thoroughly, fold in the 2 cups of chocolate chips and (1 cup of walnuts these are optional).
- Roll into the size of a walnut bake on a greased cookie sheet or parchment paper-lined sheet at 350 degrees, for 15 minutes, cool completely.
- Frost with white icing.
- Frosting Recipe:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons of shortening add evaporated milk a little at a time till easy to spread but still nice and thick, on cooled cookies.
- If you like a thin glaze just add more milk.
- You can decorate these with colored sprinkles on top of the frosting or use finely chopped nuts or coconut for a change.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
129Fat (grams)
15 gSat. Fat (grams)
9 gCarbs (grams)
22 gNet carbs
16 gSugar (grams)
27 gThe default measuring system for this website is US Customary. Unit conversions are provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. While we strive to provide accurate unit conversions, please be aware that there may be some discrepancies.
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Here are more of our favorite cookie recipes:
Cucidati Fig Sicilian Cookies
24 One-Stop Cookie Shop
Fried Bow Tie Cookies
25 Holiday Cookies
Disclosure: This recipe was originally shared in 2009. It was edited and re-published in 2019.