Spritz Cookies
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Press, bake, decorate! Easily whip up over 6 dozen buttery spritz cookies—with no dough chilling required, they’re the perfect fuss-free and festive addition to your holiday cookie trays.
Hailing from Germany, buttery spritz cookies add a whimsical touch to any holiday cookie platter. Named after the German word “spritzen,” meaning “to squirt” or “to spray,” these adorable treats owe their unique shapes to a simple but essential baking tool: the cookie press. Easily found online or at your local kitchenware shop, the cookie press is key to achieving those distinctive designs. These cookies are a fantastic baking project to enjoy with kids, who will absolutely love helping with the mixing, pressing, and decorating. Bonus: the recipe is generous, yielding over six dozen cookies, perfect for sharing at cookie swaps or holiday parties.
The most enjoyable part, of course, is the decorating. When it’s time to add a splash of color, feel free to tint the dough with a few drops of food coloring, or even divide the dough and create a rainbow of colors. After baking and cooling, a light drizzle of corn syrup or icing, topped with a sprinkle of sparkling sugar or nonpareils, will transform these cookies into edible works of art. So, grab your cookie press, and let the baking fun begin!
What You’ll Need To Make Spritz cookies
Step-by-Step Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F and set two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or beaters, beat the butter, sugar, and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add the egg, almond extract, and vanilla extract.
Beat until combined, about 30 seconds.
Add the flour.
Mix on low speed until combined. Initially, the dough will appear crumbly, as shown below.
But keep mixing and it will eventually come together.
If you wish to color the dough, add a few drops of food coloring at this stage and continue mixing until the color is evenly distributed.
Ensure your baking sheets are at room temperature, and do not grease them or line them with parchment paper. (The cookie press won’t work effectively on warm, parchment-lined, or greased baking sheets). Follow the directions provided by your cookie press manufacturer for attaching a decorative plate. Load the cookie press with some of the dough. Hold the cookie press upright and directly above a baking sheet. Firmly press out the cookies, ensuring they are spaced about 1½ inches apart.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, or until the cookies are just starting to turn golden around the edges.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
To decorate the cookies, lightly dab, drizzle, or brush a small amount of light corn syrup over each cookie. Then, either gently dip them into the sprinkles or sprinkle the decorations directly over the cookies. Remember, a little corn syrup goes a long way, so use it very sparingly.
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Spritz Cookies
Press, bake, decorate! Easily whip up over 6 dozen buttery spritz cookies—with no dough chilling required, they’re the perfect fuss-free and festive addition to your holiday cookie trays.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2¼ cups all purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled off
- Food coloring (optional; see note)
For Decorating
- Light corn syrup or glaze icing
- Sparkling sugar, nonpareils, or sprinkles
Special Equipment
- Cookie press
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or beaters, beat the butter, sugar, and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, almond extract, and vanilla extract and beat until combined, about 30 seconds. Add the flour and mix on low speed until combined. Initially, the dough will appear crumbly, but it will eventually come together. If you wish to color the dough, add a few drops of food coloring at this stage and continue mixing until the color is evenly distributed.
- Before you begin, ensure your baking sheets are at room temperature. Do not grease them or line them with parchment paper, as the cookie press won’t work effectively on surfaces that are warm, parchment-lined, or greased. Follow the directions provided by your cookie press manufacturer for attaching a decorative plate. Load the cookie press with some of the dough. To press out the cookies, hold the cookie press upright and position it so that it is directly touching the baking sheet. Firmly press out the cookies, spacing them about 1½ inches apart.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, or until the cookies are just starting to turn golden around the edges. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough, making sure to cool the baking sheets between batches (as mentioned above, the cookie press will not work on warm baking sheets).
- To decorate the cookies, lightly dab, drizzle, or brush a small amount of corn syrup over each cookie. Then, either gently dip them into the sprinkles or sprinkle the decorations directly over the cookies. Remember, a little corn syrup goes a long way, so use it very sparingly.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cookie dough can be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator, tightly wrapped in plastic, for up to 3 days. Allow it to reach room temperature before pressing and baking. The baked cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. For freezing, first cool the cookies completely, then store them in an airtight container, separating layers with parchment paper, for up to 3 months. Thaw them at room temperature before serving.
- Note on Food Coloring: For optimal results in coloring your spritz cookie dough, I recommend using gel food coloring. It's more concentrated than its liquid counterpart, allowing you to achieve rich colors with less product and without altering the dough's consistency (excess moisture from liquid coloring can impact the dough’s ability to maintain its shape). Gel food coloring is available in the baking aisle of most grocery stores. Remember, a little goes a long way; start with a small amount and add gradually to reach your desired hue.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 39
- Fat: 2 g
- Carbohydrates: 4 g
- Sugar: 2 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 0 g
- Sodium: 15 mg
- Cholesterol: 8 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I have made these cookies for years from an old Betty Crocker cookbook. I think the problem with the cookies not sticking to the pan is maybe a non stick cookie sheet was used. I have always used a very old aluminum cookie sheet. Hope this helps.
My daughter and I have made these cookies several times with perfect results! She is 12 years old and today she did them all by herself. Thank you for the easy and fool-proof recipe. In the past I have had poor results with Spritz cookies, so I am excited to have a recipe that works beautifully.
I stumbled on an old forgotten cookie press a few days ago so I was happy to find your recipe. These could not have been easier to make! And they were really cute!
Spooned in flour, so not packed? Do you know how many grams?
Yep, that’s how flour should be measured. If you look in the top right corner of the recipe, there’s a button that allows you to toggle between metric and cup measures. Hope that helps!
In using my cookie press, I had the same problem about the dough not releasing. I discovered that if I press it out, then backtrack a little with the screw/handle, they usually fall off. Thank you, Jenn, for the idea of brushing them with corn syrup to make the nonpareils and colored sugar adhere. I was putting that on before baking, not after, but the cookies look much nicer this way.
I’ve made these twice this year with the cookie press you’ve recommended. Both times the press let me down. I needed to “peel” them from the press as they wouldn’t release onto the cookie sheet consistently. What am I doing wrong? Was the butter too soft? I tried filling the press and then refrigerating it for 10 minutes or so but they still wouldn’t consistently release from the press. Any thoughts?
Hi Judy, Did you by chance line the cookie sheets with parchment paper? The press won’t release on a lined baking sheet. It also won’t work well on warm baking sheets, so it’s important to cool the baking sheets between batches. I’m happy to take a look at the recipe you used if you’d like to email it to me (jennifer@onceuponachef.com), but most spritz cookie recipes are pretty similar and do not require chilling the dough.
I had similar problem with my dough too. It was very sticky and wouldn’t release easily. I refrigerated the dough for a few minutes which helped, but it was still challenging. A previous recipe I’ve used for many years calls for 2 1/2 cups of flour where yours calls for 2 1/4 cups of flour. I thought about using more flour next time to help with this issue. What do you recommend? I did not use parchment paper and my cookie sheets were well cooled off before starting a new batch. Overall, the cookies were absolutely delicious and I will be using your recipe going forward.
Thanks for your feedback, Sharon! I agree that using more flour can help, especially if you use a lower-protein flour than what I use. May I ask what brand of flour do you use?
Thanks for responding! I used Pillsbury Best all purpose flour. PS I love your site … it’s my go to for everything!!!
Pillsbury’s flour is slightly lower in protein than what I use (King Arthur), but not significantly. If you try these again, I’d increase the flour by a few tablespoons.
Thanks again!!!!
Hi Jenn,
I love the idea of busting out 84 little cookies in one go. Perfect for gifting! So I bought the Oxo, prepared the dough per your recipe, made sure to use cool/cold sheets and no parchment- and the press just didn’t cooperate. Either not enough dough would come out, or dough would come out but it wouldn’t stick to the pan. Can I bake this dough like regular sugar cookies? I’m determined to make that press work, but after the Christmas hubbub. Maybe hearts for Valentine’s Day 🙂 Any tips appreciated! (This week I also made your gingerbread cookies, crave worthy sugar cookies and pecan shortbread- all came out perfectly!)
Hi Adrienne, Sure, you can use the dough to make sugar cookies. I would roll into balls, place on a lined baking sheet, and then use the bottom of a floured glass to press flat before baking. Sorry you had trouble with the press; it can take some practice to get the hang of it. Next time, make sure there are no air pockets in the dough inside the “tube,” as bubbles can disrupt the flow and lead to irregular cookies. Also, before pressing cookies onto the baking sheet, prime the press by squeezing the handle a few times over a mixing bowl to move the dough against the disk. The first one or two cookies never come out perfectly, which is normal; just scrape off this dough and return it to the press. Hope that helps!
Thanks for all of your delicious recipes. I can always count on them.
My cookie press stopped working and it’s time for a new one. Which one do you use? I see an OXO one that sounds interesting.
Yep I have the OXO cookie press and am happy with it – it’s linked in the recipe intro. 🙂