Spritz Bredele

Quick Summary: Spritz bredele are buttery Alsatian Christmas cookies piped into fluted sticks, rings, and S shapes, then baked until lightly golden and often dipped in chocolate. This spritzbredele recipe uses a simple butter-and-almond dough shaped with a cookie press, meat grinder, or pastry bag and stores for weeks, making it ideal for holiday gift boxes.

What is spritz bredele?

Bredele are traditional Christmas cookies from the Alsace region of France, also baked in Lorraine and across the border in Germany.

Spritz bredele (also spelled spritzbredele or spritzbredle) are known as Christmas spritz (spritz de Noël in French) or shortbread Viennese. The word spritz means "socket" and refers to the cookies' fluted, ridged shape; the literal translation of spritz bredele is "cakes socket."

Alsatians start baking spritz bredele early in the season, sometimes as soon as November, because the cookies keep for weeks and make ideal gourmet gifts. You can even hang them on the Christmas tree with a ribbon. Traditionally, they are piped into sticks, the letters S and U, rings, candy canes, and figure eights, among countless other shapes.

Manual meat grinder vs. pastry bag

The shape is what makes spritz bredele, so the tool you use matters. You can press or pipe the dough with any of these:

• Manual cookie maker. For a big holiday batch, a manual cookie maker (also called a manual meat grinder) is my top pick. It comes with an attachment that shapes cookies four ways, including a dedicated spritz nozzle.

• Old-fashioned meat grinder. A meat grinder clamped to the table works with a cookie attachment fitted on the front.

• Stand mixer. A stand mixer with a meat grinder attachment and a cookie attachment shapes cookies quickly.

• Cookie press. An affordable cookie press or a top-quality Italian cookie press presses the dough into neat shapes.

• Pastry bag. No press? The dough is thick, so piping is possible but harder. Add a little milk to loosen it, use a reusable pastry bag made of thick cotton felt, and fit an open star pastry tip for the classic rigid look.

• Cookie cutter. Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment and cut shapes with your favorite cutters. You keep the authentic taste, just not the traditional piped shape, and they are still called brédelés in French.

Why you'll love this recipe

• Perfect for gifting. This easy cookie recipe makes an excellent stocking stuffer or holiday gift for anyone on your shopping list.
• Long shelf life. You can make spritz cookies far in advance during the holiday season.
• Big batch, little time. You can make a huge batch of cookies in a fairly short period.
• Endless customization. Different flavors, shapes, and toppings make them a fun edible Christmas gift.

Ingredients

For ingredients and detailed instructions, refer to the recipe card below.

• Butter: the spritz bredele recipe calls for unsalted butter, softened at room temperature.

• Sugar: use granulated or caster sugar.

• Vanilla sugar (sucre vanillé in French): it brings a light vanilla flavor to spritz cookies.

• Egg: use a large egg at room temperature.

• Flour: the recipe calls for all-purpose flour.

• Almond flour: use blanched almond flour (poudre d'amandes in French), not ground almonds made at home, or replace it with hazelnut flour/meal (poudre de noisettes) or coconut flour.

• Baking powder: use fresh aluminum-free baking powder (levure chimique in French).

Equipment

You need only a few basic tools to make these spritz bredele cookies:

• Stand mixer
• Flour sifter
• Cookie press or manual cookie maker
• Pastry bag with an open star pastry tip
• Baking sheets
• Parchment paper
• Wire rack

How to make spritz bredele

Step 1. Preheat oven to 355°F (180°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 2. Using a flour sifter, sift the all-purpose flour with the baking powder and set aside.

Step 3. To make the cookie dough, place the butter, granulated sugar, and vanilla sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk until creamy (photo 1). Add the egg, mixing well.

Add the sifted flour mixture and almond flour to the mixture and work well to obtain a homogeneous, smooth dough (photo 2).

Step 4. Transfer the dough to a manual cookie maker fitted with a cookie attachment (photo 3) and pass it through to form sticks about 3 inches (7 cm) long (photo 4). 

Step 5. Make longer sticks to shape into an S or U, a ring, or a candy cane, and place them on a baking sheet lined with baking paper.

Step 6. Bake spritz cookies for 10 to 13 minutes, watching the baking (photo 5). The spritzbredele should be lightly browned. Cool cookies on a wire rack.

Step 7. To decorate spritz cookies, melt chocolate in a double boiler or a microwave.

Step 8. Drizzle cookies with melted chocolate (photo 6) or dip ⅓ of each cooled cookie into melted chocolate. Place on parchment paper until chocolate is set.

Step 9. If desired, sprinkle cookies with chopped nuts, shredded coconut, or chopped freeze-dried raspberries.

Expert tips

1. Replace 2 ½ tablespoons (20 g) all-purpose flour with the same amount of cocoa powder to make a chocolate version of spritz cookies.
2. Bake your cookies one baking sheet at a time for even baking.
3. Keep the piped cookies on a baking sheet in the refrigerator while waiting to bring them into the oven.

Recipe variations

• Different flours. Swap almond flour for hazelnut flour, hazelnut meal, or coconut flour to change the taste.
• Chocolate spritz. Replace 2 ½ tablespoons (20 g) of all-purpose flour with the same amount of cocoa powder for chocolate cookies.
• Warm spices. Add a pinch of ground cinnamon, a little lemon zest, or scraped vanilla seeds to the dough.
• Two-colored cookies. Pipe plain dough and chocolate dough side by side: place each in its own pastry bag, cut 1 cm off the tips, then slide both into a larger bag fitted with an open star tip.
• Toppings before baking. Sprinkle piped cookies with chopped nuts or flaked almonds before they go in the oven.
• Chocolate dip. Dip baked cookies in melted milk, dark, white, or ruby chocolate.
• Finishing touches. Cover cookies with chopped almonds, pistachios, freeze-dried raspberries, shredded coconut, poppy seeds, festive sprinkles, or chocolate vermicelli. They make a pretty Christmas cookie box for the holidays.

Storing & freezing

These spritz cookies have a long shelf life. You can easily keep them in a metal cookie tin for two weeks or longer.

You can also freeze baked (undecorated) spritz bredele for several months. To thaw, let the cookies come to room temperature.

Remember that it is not recommended to freeze cookies dipped in chocolate.

If you want to ship your frozen spritz cookies to loved ones, you can bring them to the post office while frozen. They will arrive defrosted and ready to eat.

Recipe FAQ

Can you make spritz cookies with margarine?
Yes, you can replace butter with margarine, but make sure to bring it to room temperature 1 to 2 hours before you start.

How to pipe spritz cookies?
To pipe spritz cookies using a pastry bag, fill the tip with the dough, hold the piping bag perpendicular to the cookie sheet, then shape your cookies.

How to make spritz cookies without a cookie press?
To make spritz cookies without a press, use either a meat grinder with a cookie attachment or a piping bag (preferably a reusable pastry bag) with a star-shaped tip.

Why do my spritz cookies lose their shape?
Spritz dough should be soft but not warm. If cookies spread, chill the piped dough on the baking sheet for 15 to 20 minutes before baking, and bake one sheet at a time so the oven stays hot.

Do you need to chill spritz bredele dough?
It is not required, but chilling the piped cookies briefly helps them hold their fluted shape and prevents spreading, especially in a warm kitchen.

What is the difference between spritz bredele and German spritz cookies?
They are very close. Spritz bredele are the Alsatian version and often include almond flour and vanilla sugar, while German Spritzgebäck uses a similar butter dough shaped the same way. Both come from the same piped-cookie tradition.

How long do spritz bredele keep?
Stored airtight at room temperature, undecorated spritz cookies keep for about 3 to 4 weeks. Chocolate-dipped ones are best within 2 weeks.

How many calories are in spritz bredele?
Each spritz bredele cookie has about 45 calories, though this varies with size and decoration.

Love cookies? Try these next!

• Bredele: Alsatian Christmas Cookies
• Mini Gingerbread Men Cookies
• French Vanilla Cookies
• Christmas Cookie Ornaments

Browse all of my recipes for more baking ideas.

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The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.