Buttery Spritz Cookies Recipe

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These Spritz Cookies are buttery, tender and such festive Christmas cookies! The cookie dough is super easy to put together and there’s so many ways to decorate them.

I’m going to be honest with you. Spritz cookies never used to appeal to me. Whenever I had them they were store-bought versions that lacked the flavor and texture I expect in a great cookie. But as with most things, when you go homemade you see how things should really taste. Total game changer.

Now I Love Spritz Cookies. Especially These Ones!

Now that I’m making spritz cookies myself, I can’t get enough! They are so dang good. As long as you don’t over bake them, they are super soft and tender and stay that way for at least a week. They have a lovely buttery flavor accentuated with a touch of almond extract. I would describe them as a cross between a cutout sugar cookie and shortbread. Each cookie just melts right in your mouth. Whenever I make these, I literally cannot stop eating them.

And bonus – these are SUPER easy to make! The cookie dough comes together quickly and doesn’t need to be refrigerated. The cookies don’t really spread while baking and they are small, so you can make a bunch at a time. Perfect for holiday party prep.

Red flower, white snowflake and green Christmas tree Spritz Cookies layered in a white cookie platter

How to Make These Cookies

Here’s a quick overview of how to make this recipe along with my notes. Scroll down to the recipe card for printable ingredients and instructions.

Make and Color Your Cookie Dough

  • Make the cookie dough. You’ll cream the butter and sugar together, then add the egg and the extracts (I use a little vanilla and almond). Finally, add the flour and salt and mix just until combined.
  • Color your cookie dough. If you want to use a few colors, divide your dough into parts and color it. I recommend gel icing color, not food coloring. Gel icing color allows you to add a small amount to achieve bright color. With food coloring you have to add a lot and it thins out your cookie dough, which will cause your cookies to spread too much.

Shape the Cookies & Bake

  • Add the dough to your cookie press. Now you add your cookie dough to the cookie press and shape your cookies! I’m a big fan of this cookie press, but feel free to use whichever you have.
  • Decorate! I used a variety of sprinkles. The options are endless when it comes to sprinkles. But you could also decorate them with chocolate chips or add a chocolate drizzle after baking them.
  • Now it’s time to bake the cookies. I wanted to be sure that my cookies were super soft and tender, so I baked them just until they were done – about 5 minutes. Definitely don’t over bake them and dry them out.

The final cookies are purely amazing! Soft, tender and buttery! It’s hard not to eat one right after the other until they’re all gone! These will definitely be a hit for you this Christmas!

Red flower, white snowflake and green Christmas tree Spritz Cookies spread out over a white table top

How to Use a Cookie Press

You’ll add the plate of the shape you want to make to the bottom of the press and then add your cookie dough into the top. Hold the press upright with the bottom directly on the cookie sheet. Press the lever to release a cookie, then lift up the press and you have your cookie!

If the cookie dough sticks to the press, you can use your finger to gently release the cookie. If it holds it’s shape, great. If not, add it back to your press and keep going. It is important to not try to press the cookies out onto something that’s really non-stick, like parchment paper, or you will have trouble.

Why Are They Called Spritz Cookies?

Now before we go into how to make these awesome cookies, lets talk about what they are exactly. The word “spritz” comes from the German word “spritzen”, which means “to squirt”. They are basically named for the way they are made – by squirting/pressing the cookie dough through a cookie press.

Red flower, white snowflake and green Christmas tree Spritz Cookies spread out over a white table top

How to Store

To store homemade spritz cookies, place them in an airtight container to keep them fresh and prevent them from drying out. Layer the cookies with parchment or wax paper to avoid sticking, especially if they’re decorated with icing or sprinkles. Store them at room temperature for up to 1 week, or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. For longer storage, freeze the cookies in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months, thawing them at room temperature before serving.

More Christmas Cookies

Video Tutorial

Read transcript

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Red flower, white snowflake and green Christmas tree Spritz Cookies layered in a white cookie platter
Recipe

Buttery Spritz Cookies Recipe

  • Author: Lindsay
  • Prep Time: 35 minutes
  • Cook Time: 5 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 65-70 cookies
  • Category: Cookies
  • Method: Oven
  • Cuisine: American

Description

These Spritz Cookies are buttery, tender and such festive Christmas cookies! The cookie dough is super easy to put together and there’s so many ways to decorate them.


Ingredients

  • 1 cup (224g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3/4 cup (155) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • 2 1/4 cups (293g) all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Red gel icing color, optional
  • Green gel icing color, optional
  • Sprinkles

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats. I don’t recommend parchment paper with these cookies. You want the cookie dough to stick to the surface you press them onto and parchment paper is non-stick. Set cookie sheets aside.
  2. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large mixer bowl on medium speed until light in color and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. You should be able to see the mixture lighten in color and get a creamy texture and know it’s ready.
  3. Add the egg and mix until well combined.
  4. Add the vanilla extract and almond extract and mix until well combined.
  5. Add the flour and salt and mix until the dough is combined, then remove the bowl from the mixer and finish combining with a rubber spatula, if needed. Do not over mix.
  6. If coloring some of the cookie dough, divide it into parts. I used white, red and green, so I divided it evenly into three parts.
  7. Use the gel icing color to color the dough. Add small amounts to begin with, then add more as needed. You can always add additional color, but can’t remove it if you add too much. Adding too much liquid will thin out your cookie dough a bit.
  8. Add one of the colors of cookie dough to your cookie press (I use this one) and follow the directions for your press to set it up. Hold the cookie press perpendicular to your cookie sheet and press out the cookies. They can be fairly close together, since they don’t really spread.
  9. Decorate the cookies with sprinkles, if desired.
  10. Bake cookies for 5-8 minutes. I prefer them nice and soft, so I went with 5 minutes, but feel free to increase that time and adjust based on your oven.
  11. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 4-5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
  12. Store cookies in an air tight container for up to about 1 week.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 cookie
  • Calories: 48
  • Sugar: 2.2 g
  • Sodium: 18.1 mg
  • Fat: 2.7 g
  • Carbohydrates: 5.2 g
  • Protein: 0.5 g
  • Cholesterol: 9.6 mg

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348 Comments
  1. Kathi

    My dough is so sticky and won’t even make shapes. It’s a big mound of soft dough. I followed the recipe exactly and used gel coloring, not liquid. I can’t imagine what went wrong 🙁

    1. Deana Janowsky

      I added a 1/8 cup more of flour and chilled for 10-15 minutes before pressing. They get sticky when warm

  2. Jackie Robbins

    These are so yummy. Ordered the cookie press and the only trouble I had was getting them to release onto pan. But I really think it was just a new gadget I am going to have to work with and learn. It was all good though, we just ate the ones that messed up immediately. Very good cookie. Thank you.

  3. Diane

    The recipe states “don’t over mix “. How are you supposed to tint the dough without mixing your guts out. I think it ruined my dough as my cookies spread too much

    1. Lindsay

      Mixing and gently folding are two different things. When you’re mixing the dough, you’re often using a mixer, which can over mix the dough. When adding the color, I do it by hand and am basically folding the dough. You obviously want to do it as little as you can, but it should be fine. I just made these cookies exactly like the photos 2 days ago and they were perfect. If they spread too much, you may have just added too much coloring. Did you use the gels?

  4. Mae

    Hi, Lindsay. Thank you for sharing this recipe, it was delicious! I also have the OXO Good Grips cookie press, but I had a little trouble in between batches. The first one came out perfect. There was no issue with the cookies sticking to the mat whatsoever. For the second batch, I rinsed the cookie press because I was switching shapes/colors and it was really hard to get the cookies out of the press. They were not sticking to the mat and I had to do a ‘double press’ pretty much for them to get out, which left that pretty shapeless, looking like a blob. Any tips on how to avoid that? Thank you so much!

    1. Lindsay

      Hmm, I actually made these yesterday too. 🙂 I did the same as you describe with washing between shapes/colors and didn’t have any issues. Often, the not sticking is due more to what you’re pressing them onto. Did you use a silicone mat? Do you think that got a little greasy, so they weren’t sticking well anymore? You could try washing that. I didn’t need to do that, but it’s a possibility. But it’s probably more to do with the surface you’re pressing them onto.

      1. Martina

        The cookie dough may not release and stick to the cookie sheets because the cookie sheets are too warm. I use two separate cookie sheets. One cools off while the other pan is in the oven.

      2. Mae

        Hi Lindsay,
        Thank you for the reply! I did indeed use a silicone mat, but reading some other comments and talking to a couple of people, I do believe it might have something to do with the temperature of the baking sheet/cookie dough. Next time I make them, I’ll keep an eye out for that. Thank you so much.

    2. Steve

      I make these every year and I think I’ve pretty much got it figured out. There is a bit of a trick to it I have found. I use regular nonstick cookie sheets but I put them in the freezer and only work with one at a time so that I can keep alternating cold pans. It usually takes several cookies to get them to come out of the extruder correctly. I collect that waste dough and reserve it for the end. After they bake I put the unwashed pan back in the freezer and grab the fresh cold one. Again any duds I collect the dough for and at the end combine all that dough and make some fun multicolor cookies. These usually get eaten up first by the kids. Also I don’t wash the cookie press in between colors. I’ve never had a problem with the colors being affected. I also add more vanilla and almond then this recipe calls for.

      1. Mae

        Thank you all so much for the replies and tips. That makes perfect sense, I do believe the issue here was something related to the temperature. I left the unused cookie dough out while the different batches were baking, next time I’ll try refrigerating the extra batches until they’re ready to be used. I’ll also leave the sheets in the freezer prior to use. Thank you so much!!

    1. Lindsay

      Yes, they freeze great. Just keep in mind that it’s possible for the sprinkles (if you use them) to bleed a bit when they are thawed.

  5. Sarah

    I’m so excited to use this recipe! If I’m only using vanilla extract, do I just double it (to replace the almond extract); so 2 tsp total?

  6. Joyce Hartman

    Made these spritz cookies today. Followed recipe as written. ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS! The perfect spritz…tender, buttery, just a lovely cookie. 💖🎄

  7. Carla

    I am using an original metal press which I got at an estate sale. After washing, should I treat the press and the pieces with spray on oil, or just use after washing and drying?

    1. Sarah

      I have my grandma’s original metal press and have made spritz cookies with it before, and because of the butter in the dough, it doesn’t stick; no need to prep anything!

    2. Katie Z

      Hi Carla, My mother always uses a metal press (from the 1970s) and she never oils or greases it. The butter in the batter seems to do the trick. In my experience the old metal presses are the best!

  8. ASHMUN

    This was a great recipe. I followed your instructions except for the almond extract which I don’t like. They turned out wonderful. Ended up having to make more because the family loved them.

    1. Lindsay

      The problem with regular food coloring is that it is a thin liquid rather than a concentrated gel, so you have to add more of it to get a deeper color and it thins out the cookie dough too much. If you were going to use it, you’d need to use a very small amount.

  9. Lauren

    I love this recipe! Makes the best Spritz! I did an experiment and substituted sugar with stevia and flour with almond flour. Let’s just say I’ll be sticking to the original recipe

  10. Phyllis

    threw the entire batch out as it would not even form , way too soft. I tried adding a little flour and it didn’t work, then I tried chilling and it didn’t work. I followed recipe to a T.

    1. Lindsay

      I’m sorry you had trouble with them, but I’m also very confident in the recipe. It sounds like your butter was either much too soft (read about room temperature butter here, it’s not always what people think), or you didn’t fully cream the butter and sugar. When it’s properly creamed, it should visibly lighten in color and texture should become fluffy and actually grow in volume. The other option is that you under measured your flour, which is possible but not as common.

      1. Lindsay

        I haven’t tried it, but I’d think it’d be fine. Just bring it back to room temperature before using it.

Lindsay
About Lindsay

I’m the baker, recipe developer and photographer behind Life, Love and Sugar. I love sharing trusted recipes with helpful tips to give you great results.

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“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29