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Published: Dec 7, 2019 · Modified: Dec 30, 2019 by Amanda Powell · Estimated time to read: About 2 minutes to read this article. · This post may contain affiliate links.

Milano Cookies Recipe

Name: Milano Cookie Recipe
Prep time: 18 min
Cook time: 14 min
Total time: 32 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour; 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt; 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature; 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar; 1 large egg white, room temperature; 1 large egg, room temperature; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled; 1 1/4 cups chopped dark chocolate; 1/2 cup, plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream; mint extract (optional)

Sure, the store-bought stuff is good, but nothing beats homemade milano cookies! Impress everyone during your cookie exchange this year. Easily customize the flavors with this easy to follow milano cookies recipe.

If I had to name one cookie as the ultimate “adulting” cookie, it would be the Milano. Growing up, I always considered it to be a cookie that only grown-ups can enjoy, and it was out of bounds for someone my age.

As I grew up and had money of my own, I still shied away from Milanos, thinking they were for someone who was more responsible. The type of cookie you eat when you have your own house and car. It took me a while until I actually realized I was both being silly and also worthy of this cookie.

I think this pretty much sums up my adolescence.

Are Milano Cookies Italian?

Technically, no. The cookies were actually created by Pepperidge Farms in 1956. That being said, the cookie is based on Italian-style cookies.

Are Milano Cookies Soft?

Milano cookies are light, buttery, crisp cookies that sandwich a rich, velvety chocolate ganache. They are far from soft, and make wonderful cookies to dip in a glass of ice-cold milk or your coffee because they can retain their structure well.

Can You Freeze Milano Cookies?

Absolutely! I love freezing them. They do get a little softer when thawed, but I don’t mind that. If you want to keep your cookies crisp, I would refrain from freezing them. Honestly, I do enjoy eating them while they are still mostly frozen.

Are Milano Cookies Gluten-Free

No, they are not gluten-free, but you can easily make it so by using a 1:1 gluten-free baking mix. I recommend using King Arthur Flour and Bob’s Red Mill.

Want to Bake More Cookies?

If you want more cookies, try my double chocolate cookies or my cinnamon roll cookies! You may also enjoy my German thumbprint cookies and my s’mores stuffed cookies. My coconut chocolate chip cookies are a reader favorite. If you’d like to be more adventurous, try something like my edible sugar cookie dough!

Milano Cookie Recipe

Yield: one dozen

Prep Time: 18 minutes

Cook Time: 14 minutes

Total Time: 32 minutes

These delicious milano cookies taste even better than the real thing!

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1 large egg white, room temperature
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 1/4 cups chopped dark chocolate
1/2 cup, plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
mint extract (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheet with parchment paper.
Mix together the flour and salt. Set aside.
Cream the butter and powdered sugar together until light. Beat in the eggs well Add in the vanilla and the melted butter and mix until well combined. Add in the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
Fit a piping bag with a large 1/2" round piping tip and fill with the cookie dough.
Pipe 2 inch lines of dough two inches apart on the parchment paper. Bake for 9 - 10 minutes, or until the edges are a light golden brown. Allow to cool completely.
While the cookies are cooling, heat the chocolate and heavy cream over a double boiler until smooth. Allow to cool completely.
Drop a teaspoon of the ganache onto half the cookies and top with the other half of the cookies.
Store in an air tight container for up to 5 days.

Notes

If you want to make mint milanos, add a couple of drops of mint extract to your heavy cream before making the filling!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1 cookie
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 162Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 30mgSodium: 54mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 1gSugar: 11gProtein: 2g

About Amanda Powell

Baker, photographer, and sometimes world traveler behind A Cookie Named Desire. Obsessed with helping people live life sweetly with delicious food to share with the special people in your life and creating lasting memories.

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Comments

Lisa @ Panning The Globe says
October 09, 2015 at 12:25 pm
Milanos have been one of my favorite cookies since childhood. I love the idea of making them at home! BTW your photos are gorgeous!
Reply
Medha @ Whisk & Shout says
October 09, 2015 at 4:31 pm
These look fabulous! What a classic cookie- love that chocolate ganache 🙂 Pinning!
Reply
Oana says
October 13, 2015 at 2:35 pm
I have my eyes on these cookies for a very long time, maybe now that I see your recipe I get myself together and actually bake them. Thank you for sharing, it’s inspiring!
Reply
- Amanda says
  October 14, 2015 at 10:45 am
  They are so easy to make! The hardest part is not eating the cookies straight out the oven (which I admit to doing with the first batch!)
  Reply
Sabrina says
October 14, 2015 at 6:12 pm
Love this recipe! I ate these cookies all the time as a kid. Pictures are beautiful, too!
Reply
Lisa Sharp says
October 20, 2015 at 8:44 pm
Oh these could be dangerous! Milano cookies are some of my favorites.
Reply
- Amanda says
  October 21, 2015 at 12:09 am
  They are dangerous! I ate so many of them straight out the oven without the chocolate. You think they are pretty small so it’s okay, but then the pan is nearly empty the next time you look down!
  Reply
Renee @ Awesome on 20 says
October 24, 2015 at 2:30 pm
I hope everything goes well for you in Germany. I moved to Scotland two monthss ago, and I love it.
Reply
- Amanda says
  October 24, 2015 at 7:40 pm
  I hope you are doing well in Scotland! I am still waiting on my passport (so much for the expedited service!), but I can’t wait to go!
  Reply
Lou Lou Girls says
October 26, 2015 at 3:53 pm
Beautiful! This looks so good! Pinned and tweeted. Thank you for being a part of our party! I hope to see you on Monday at 7 pm. We love partying with you! Lou Lou Girls
Reply
Liz says
December 10, 2015 at 11:21 am
These are someof the best lookingMilano copy cat cookies I have found. Definitely going to make them. Perfect for Christmas. Do you think they would freeze well?
Thanks
Reply
- Amanda says
  December 10, 2015 at 5:11 pm
  Hi Liz, These should freeze well as long as the container is really air tight (oh my gosh, eating a frozen Milano sounds really good right about now!)
  Reply
Jimi says
March 03, 2016 at 10:03 pm
I may be wrong but I didn’t see where to add the flour and salt so I did it after I creamed the butter and sugar.
Reply
- Amanda says
  March 03, 2016 at 11:48 pm
  Hi Jimi! With cookies, you typically want to add the flour after you’ve added the eggs because mixing in the eggs after will require more mixing which can toughen the end product. Please let me know how they turned out!
  Reply
Rica says
February 19, 2017 at 11:47 pm
These look delicious! I have a few questions though. Does the ganache harden or should i remove the cream for it to harden? Also, some recipes make use of granulated sugar instead of powdered sugar. Does this make a difference? And lastly (hehe), does using white eggs instead of the whole egg make a difference? Im trying to work around the ingredients i have on hand 🙂
Reply
- Amanda says
  February 20, 2017 at 3:22 pm
  Hi Rica, the chocolate will remain nice and soft (but not too soft). It will get hard without the cream. The difference in the granulated and powdered sugar is the texture and ease of incorporating it into the batter. It wouldn’t be a 1 to 1 substitution and I don’t know what that would be. You can make powdered sugar by blending a cup with a tablespoon or cornstarch until it is very fine. Whole eggs vs egg whites does make a difference in how light the cookie is and the crispness so it does make a significant difference! I hope this helps!
  Reply
Yasmine says
March 28, 2020 at 12:38 pm
Hiii, thank you so much for sharing this recipe!! Is it possible to cut the sugar down to 1 cup?
Reply
- Amanda Powell says
  March 28, 2020 at 12:46 pm
  Hi Yasmin, I’ve never tried cutting back the sugar, but you are welcome to try. Please let me know how it turns out!
  Reply
DeeDee says
May 11, 2020 at 12:23 pm
Hi! I made these milanos and they were delicious! But for some reason my cookies were soft. Do you know why this might happen?
Reply
- Amanda Powell says
  May 11, 2020 at 12:29 pm
  Hi DeeDee! There could be a couple of reasons, but it’s likely they could’ve done with 1-2 more minutes in the oven, especially if your cookies weren’t as thin.
  Reply
Lola says
May 18, 2020 at 10:08 am
Hey there! I was wondering why the butter was listed twice? do we put both amounts of butter in or what?
Reply
- Amanda Powell says
  May 18, 2020 at 12:02 pm
  It’s for getting the right consistency in the batter. And yes, add both!
  Reply