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.
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!
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.
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
Buttery Spritz Cookies Recipe
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 65–70 cookies 1x
- 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
- 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.
- 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.
- Add the egg and mix until well combined.
- Add the vanilla extract and almond extract and mix until well combined.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Decorate the cookies with sprinkles, if desired.
- 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.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 4-5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- 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
The dough was super easy to work with, but it spread a lot. What did I do wrong?
If they spread too much, then you either didn’t add quite enough flour or you added a little too much butter or sugar (which both would cause more spread). I’d also make sure you use a large egg and not an extra large size egg.
This was a good recipe! Very accurate with measurements and they turned out very cute! They are perfect for the cookie exchange I’m going to!
So glad you enjoyed them!
I’ve made spritz for years. I have found the dough sticks better to cold cookie sheets. If I need to reuse one, I put it the garage for a few minutes to make it cool. I live in New England so it’s cold in the garage:)
Can you let me know what type of pearls you used? They look so pretty, but when I added them, they all melted in the oven!
I use these.
Don’t put them on before you bake. Put them on right when you pull out of the oven.
My question was can you freeze the dough or I see a comment you could freeze the cookie? – thanks – just trying to pre-parapet as much as possible
When you freeze them depends a little bit on how you want to decorate them I think. You could freeze the cookie dough or you could freeze the cookies. But if you freeze the cookies, you probably don’t want to add any sprinkles unless you’re OK with the color of the sprinkles bleeding a little bit when they thaw. I hope that helps!
Can you freeze this dough?
I would imagine that would be fine.
HI! Your spritz press cookies are beautiful! I wanted to know the brand press you use?
Thank you! It’s OXO brand.
By far best recipe I’ve tried. These came off spritz gun so easily in past I’ve fought with dough. I did only 2 cups flour only. Definitely making again, but need to adjust the quantity. I only got 30 cookies out of single batch.
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Can I use regular butter
Sure, just leave out the added salt so that they aren’t too salty.
I’m going to try spritz for the first time tomorrow! I’m excited to try your recipe. But, I have the old version of the gun. (Twist style) Do you have any suggestions for me to make sure they come out like yours? Thanks in advance!
Gosh, I’ve never used that type of press before, so it’s hard for me to say. I hope you enjoy them!
Can I flash freeze the spritz cookies? Do I put the sprinkles on before I freeze them?
You can freeze them. You won’t be able to add sprinkles after they’re baked unless you frost them or put on a thin layer of icing. But if you add sprinkles before you bake them, just be aware that condensation that forms when they thaw could cause the sprinkles to bleed.
Should you refrigerate this dough before putting it through the cookie press?
You can, but then you would want to bring it back to room temperature before using it. If it is cold, it will be too firm to press through the cookie press.
Can you make the dough in advance? If so how long can you store it in the refrigerator?
Yes, yes you can make it in advance. It should be fine in the fridge for up to three days.
Can I put it directly on a cookie sheet, or is it essential that I press onto a silicone mat?
You can try the cookie sheet. I found that the cookie dough stuck really well to the silicone baking mat. And I do think things generally tend to bake better on a silicone baking mat.
I have better luck if I chill the baking sheets before putting the cookies on.
Do these freeze well, or should I make them closer to when we’re planning to eat them?
Yes, they freeze well. Just be aware that if they have sprinkles on them, the colors could bleed from condensation when you thaw them. I would thaw them in the fridge so there’s less chance of condensation.
I added some cocoa to this recipe and for some reason the cookies are not sticking to the pan. The first batch I made without the cocoa worked just fine. Any suggestions as to why the cocoa recipe would not be sticking to the pan? Thanks
I haven’t tried it with cocoa powder and without knowing the amounts that you changed, it’s hard to say.