Holiday Spritz Cookies
These classic soft and buttery spritz cookies are simple but irresistible, and perfect for the holidays. Are spritz cookies a tradition in your house, too? If not, they should be!
My earliest holiday memories include baking cookies with my mom and siblings to give to friends and neighbors (and enjoy ourselves). We’d always make mint fudge, snowballs, gingersnaps, sugar cookies, and these classic butter spritz cookies.
Spritz cookies are one of my favorite holiday cookies! They are soft and buttery, with an almost melt-in-your-mouth texture and hints of vanilla and almond extract. Use a cookie press to make shapes like Christmas trees, wreaths, and snowflakes and decorate with festive sprinkles.
Table of Contents
- What are spritz cookies?
- Ingredients you'll need
- Do I need to use a cookie press?
- How to make butter spritz cookies
- Tips for making the best spritz cookies
- More holiday cookie recipes to try
- Get the recipe
What are spritz cookies?
These cookies get their name from the German word spritzen, which means “to squirt”, and a cookie press creates various shapes with the cookie dough before baking. Spritz cookies are somewhat similar to both sugar cookies and shortbread cookies with their sweet buttery flavor and texture, but their shapes and decorations is what makes them so special!
Ingredients you’ll need
Here’s everything required to make these classic spritz cookies (find the full recipe at the bottom of this article). This is a very basic recipe, and you likely already have the ingredients on hand.
Do I need to use a cookie press?
A cookie press is the best way to make classic spritz cookies. They are inexpensive, very easy to use and clean, and a fun addition to your kitchen! (I store mine with my holiday cookie cutters.)
However, if you don’t want to purchase a cookie press, it is possible to use a piping bag and tip to create different shapes with the spritz cookie dough. Mix in 1-2 tablespoons of milk into the dough with the eggs to make it a little easier to pipe. Then let your creativity run wild!
How to make butter spritz cookies
Now that you have your ingredients and tools ready, it’s time to bake some cookies! This recipe is simple, and perfect for getting the whole family involved in holiday baking.
- Prepare cookie dough. Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy, add eggs one at a time, along with vanilla and almond extract. Then mix in flour and salt and mix until combined.
- Decide on cookie shapes and decorations. I like to use the tree, wreath, snowflake and teddy bear shapes, but there’s other fun options too. Have sprinkles and sanding sugar ready.
- Load cookie press. Load press with cookie dough according to manufacturer’s instructions.
- Stamp cookies onto baking sheet pan. Use cookie press to stamp dough onto an ungreased baking sheet pan. You’ll get the hang of it as you go! (Often the first few presses come out a bit wonky for me, and I just scrape any misshapen cookies off the pan to reload later.) If desired, add sprinkles to dough before baking.
- Bake. Bake pressed cookies at 400°F for 7-10 minutes until dough is set and dry.
- Add decorations and cool. Add more sprinkles or sanding sugar immediately after cookies come out of the oven. Let cool on the pan for a few minutes, then use a spatula to remove them from the pan.
Tips for making the best spritz cookies
- Make sure butter is at room temperature, but not at all melty or shiny looking. Cookie dough made with butter that is too warm may spread more in the oven during baking.
- Press dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet and DO NOT use parchment paper. You want the dough to stick to the pan as it comes out of the cookie press. And don’t worry, the cookies will release from the pan after baking.
- Sprinkles can be added before or after baking, or both! I typically do both.
- Don’t overbake. Spritz cookies are small and will bake very quickly, so keep an eye on them as every oven is a little different. Cookies are done when they appear completely set and dry, but aren’t browned at all on the edges (Cookies that have browned on the edges will be more crisp than soft). I recommend baking a small test batch to get the timing right.
- Additional ways to decorate spritz cookies: color cookie dough with gel food coloring (mix in with the eggs), drizzle with melted chocolate or white chocolate, or top with a simple icing glaze.
- If you find that sprinkles don’t stick very well to your cookies after baking, brush cooled cookies with a bit of simple syrup to help them stick, then add sprinkles.
- Spritz cookies store and keep well! Store in an airtight container at room temperature for a week or even more (and they’ll still taste delicious), or store in the freezer in a ziplock bag for a month or more.
More holiday cookie recipes to try
- Frosted Sugar Cookie Cut Outs
- Peppermint White Chocolate Chip Cookies
- 4-in-1 Shortbread Cookies
- Chewy Gingersnaps
Get the recipe
Spritz Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (236 grams) unsalted butter , at room temperature
- â…” cup (132 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 ¼ cups (270 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Sprinkles or sanding sugar , optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, or large bowl with handheld mixer, beat butter and sugar on high until creamy, about 2-3 minutes. 1 cup (236 grams) unsalted butter, â…” cup (132 grams) granulated sugar
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Add vanilla and almond extracts. 2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon almond extract
- Add flour and salt and mix on low until combined.2 ¼ cups (270 grams) all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt
- Load cookie dough into spritz cookie press and, following manufacturer’s instructions, press dough out onto ungreased cookie sheets about 1 inch apart.
- Alternately, you can load cookie dough into a large piping bag fitted with a medium star tip. Pipe dough in small 1-inch shapes about 1 inch apart.
- Bake until dough is set and bottoms just begin to turn brown, about 8-10 minutes.
- Top with sprinkles or sanding sugar immediately, and let cool on pan 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
- Repeat with remaining dough.
Video
This recipe was originally published December 2016, and was developed in partnership with Go Bold With Butter.
These cookies look absolutely adorable! My sister and I tried making spritz cookies recently, but unfortunately our cookie press broke, so they didn’t turn out as planned. Yours look beautiful, and I bet they taste amazing too!
These spritz cookies bring back so many memories of holiday baking with my family! I love how versatile they are with all the fun shapes you can make.
So cute! My sister and I tried making spritz cookies yesterday, but our cookie press broke halfway through. Yours look so beautiful—and I bet they taste amazing too!
Oh no! You can always pipe or scoop them and bake if you don’t have a cookie press.
Great overview of spritz cookies! I especially appreciated the tip about not using parchment paper to help the dough stick during pressing. For anyone experimenting, adding a bit of gel food coloring to the dough really makes the shapes pop.
The cakes are designed to be incredibly delicate and unique; they are formed like Christmas trees and are very intriguing. Play happy wheels game.
So cute!! My sister and I attempted to make spritz cookies yesterday, but our efforts were thrwarted by a broken cookie press. These are so pretty and I’m sure they’re delicious, too!