I am doing NaBloPoMo this month. 30 blog posts in 30 days. Come join me. #nablopomo2020
This post has been years in the making. Spritzgebäck is the traditional holiday cookie in my family. Everybody gets involved. My Mom prepares the dough, my Dad and the kids (first my sister and I, then my cousin, now my niece and nephew) make the cookies. My Dad used to have a manual meat mincer and cookie inset that he used for years and years, but they upgraded to an electric food grinder attachment for a stand mixer a couple of years ago (which makes it much easier). Everybody in the family brings a cookie tin that gets filled to the top with spritz cookies and in recent years, when I couldn’t go home for the holidays, my Mom always sent me some in her Christmas package. It’s always the most coveted item.
We decided that this year, with the pandemic and unreliable postal service times and outrageous postage prices, we wouldn’t send any packages for Christmas. So, finally, after talking about it for years, I invested in a meat grinder attachment and cookie inset to make my own. I guess it was about time.
The trick for these cookies is to chill the dough overnight, then prepare the cookies the next day by pressing it through the meat grinder into thin strips which bake into extra crispy, hard cookies. My niece and nephew can demonstrate it much better than I could because they’re experts now.
If you are “team soft cookie”, I still recommend you give these a try. Maybe they’ll change your mind. Although, you will have to invest in the equipment first… but it’s worth it, IMHO. Jon is also a fan. The cookies are crisp, but not too sweet. Just perfect with a cup of coffee or tea. Great for dunking, too. Our family traditionally makes them ‘plain’, but you can also dip on end into melted chocolate if you’re into that.
If you try them, let me know if you enjoy them. Meanwhile, I’ll sit here with my nostalgia, nibbling on a cookie.
Ingredients
500 g unbleached wheat flour
250 g sugar
250 g butter (unsalted) — softened
1 egg
1 pinch salt
1 pouch vanilla sugar
Beat the soft butter until fluffy. Add the sugar and eggs and keep beating. Add the rest of the ingredients and form into a ball. Wrap in aluminum foil and place in the fridge overnight.
Bring dough to room temperature before proceeding. Add dough to your meat grinder and press through the cookie attachment and line the cookies up on a cookie sheet (you can line them up tightly as they won’t expand much, but you still might have to bake in a few batches). Bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool down on a cooling rack.
Spritzgebäck (German Spritz Cookies)
- 500 g wheat flour
- 250 g sugar
- 250 g butter ((unsalted))
- 1 egg
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pouch vanilla sugar
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Beat the soft butter until fluffy.
-
Add the sugar and eggs and keep beating.
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Add the rest of the ingredients and form into a ball. Wrap in aluminum foil and place in the fridge overnight.
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Bring dough to room temperature before proceeding.
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Add dough to your meat grinder and press through the cookie attachment and line them up on your cookie sheet.
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Bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
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Let cool down on a cooling rack.
tanja
November 30, 2020 at 11:58 amMmmh, Spritzgebaeck – I know someone who is really excited about you finally getting all the necessary attachements :)
San
December 1, 2020 at 8:19 pmI can’t wait to see how you like them :)
Inna
November 30, 2020 at 3:09 pmYeess, family traditions! I love it. Thank you so much for the recipe and I love the fact that all your family takes part in this, it is amazing. These family moments matters the most and I feel very happy right now reading this. This literally makes me so happy.
I also love how there is a specific technique of making this recipe. Your cookies looks so great!
San
December 1, 2020 at 8:19 pmAwww, thank you, Inna. :)
Sara
November 30, 2020 at 6:12 pmI’m going to have to save this and give it a try for Christmas! These look delicious. Love the unicorn. ;) I think I even have the dough press already… Sorry that you won’t be getting any from home this year but glad you have a way to make them here. <3
San
December 1, 2020 at 8:19 pmOh, if you do have the dough press, definitely give these a try… they’re so good (if you’re into hard cookies :)).
Lisa of Lisa's Yarns
December 2, 2020 at 5:14 amMy mom made these when I was young, but has not since then – not sure why. She had a cookie press thing, so not the set-up that you have. But I do remember thinking the cookies were very pretty! We have German ancestry so I am sure that is why she made them – I think her mom must have made them, too!
San
December 3, 2020 at 10:37 amYes, that sounds like your Mom made them because of your German ancestry! That is awesome.
Tobia | craftaliciousme
December 5, 2020 at 12:55 amI love reading about this family tradition. Specially that everyone has his/her job in the process. I just talked the husband and asked if we would bake cookies together this year as we are starting a new tradition here with not spending Christmas with my parents. But maybe I sneak in a bit of baking on my own. Spritz cookies will not be on our list though. However if I get sent some I would enjoy. So glad you enjoy them and finally gotten the equipment.