Best Old Fashioned German Cookies Recipes

OLD GERMAN HONEY COOKIES

Old German Honey Cookies image

I got this recipe from my grandmother who got it from her grandmother. She had to translate it and then figure out measurements. The original recipe called for "enough flour to make a dough". Thankfully grandma knew what kind of dough.

Provided by Darlene

Categories World Cuisine Recipes European German

Yield 24

Number Of Ingredients 8

Ingredients

1 cup white sugar
1 cup shortening
1 cup honey
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground ginger

Steps:

In a saucepan over low heat, melt together sugar, shortening and honey. Let cool.
Mix together eggs, vanilla, baking soda and ginger. Gradually add to cooled honey mixture.
Slowly add 4 cups of flour to mixture. Stir until well blended. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) until golden (about 12-15 minutes).

Nutrition Facts : Calories 233.3 calories, Carbohydrate 36 g, Cholesterol 15.5 mg, Fat 9.2 g, Fiber 0.6 g, Protein 2.7 g, SaturatedFat 2.3 g, Sodium 59.3 mg, Sugar 20 g

TRADITIONAL SPRINGERLE

Traditional Springerle image

We have made these very traditional German cookies every year since I was a child. My mother remembers her grandmother making them with this recipe that has been in our family for generations. The molds can be hard to find, but check specialty cookware stores and antique shops.

Provided by PREGOCOOK

Categories World Cuisine Recipes European German

Time 8h35m

Yield 48

Number Of Ingredients 7

Ingredients

1 ½ tablespoons crushed anise seeds
3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup confectioners' sugar

Steps:

Lightly grease 4 cookie sheets. Sprinkle with anise seeds. Set aside until needed.
Mix the flour and baking powder together in a bowl until well blended. Place the eggs, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl; beat until light and frothy, 5 to 8 minutes. Slowly stir in the flour mixture until a thick dough forms.
Working with handfuls of dough, roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface until 1/4 inch thick. Lightly sift confectioners' sugar over the dough. Place springerle molds onto the dough; press down hard and evenly until the mold's design registers in the dough. Remove the mold. Use a small knife to cut around each cookie, and place on prepared cookie sheets. Repeat, until all dough has been used. Cover the cookies with a lightweight cotton cloth, and allow to dry 8 hours, or overnight.
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
Bake cookies in preheated oven until tops are pale brown and set, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool on a rack. Store in an airtight container.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 74.8 calories, Carbohydrate 16.1 g, Cholesterol 15.5 mg, Fat 0.5 g, Fiber 0.3 g, Protein 1.5 g, SaturatedFat 0.1 g, Sodium 16.2 mg, Sugar 9 g

OLD FASHIONED BUTTER COOKIES

Old Fashioned Butter Cookies image

These are not the common butter cookies you are so used to seeing. This is an old German recipe given to me by my Aunt. I have been making these since I was married 31 years ago. They are rolled very thin, almost like a wafer than a cookie. The 6 egg yolks give it the richness that other butter cookies lack. I always look through websites and cookbooks to see if anyone else has a butter cookie recipe like this - I have not found one yet. I only updated the method to use a food processor instead of creaming the butter by hand. These are truly delicious and special.

Provided by Joanne117

Categories Dessert

Time 1h15m

Yield 7 dozen, 6 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 8

Ingredients

2 3/4 cups flour, sifted
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 lb unsalted butter (cold)
6 egg yolks (Large Eggs)
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
red sugar crystals
green sugar crystals

Steps:

Sift dry ingredients together. Place in food processor and process a few seconds to mix. Cut each stick of butter into 8 pieces and place in food processor. Process 20 to 30 seconds until butter is cut in evenly. Add egg yolks and vanilla and process until mixture forms a ball. Remove, divide into 4 equal balls, flatten each and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
Preheat over to 375 degrees. Cut aluminum foil to fit approximately 4 cookie sheets. Using a well floured pastry cloth and rolling pin cover, roll 1 section of dough, leaving the rest refrigerated until needed. Roll evenly approximately 1/8" thick (or actually 1/8" thin). Using small size cookies cutters, cut cookies (they should remain in the cutter, then tap out on to the foil lined cookie sheets). Place cookies 1/2 inch apart. Sprinkle with sugar crystals. (Easier to do one whole sheet red, next sheet green). Reroll scraps and roll out, trying to handle dough as little as possible. Don't reroll dough a third time, use another refrigerated section of dough. Bake approximately 8 minutes, one sheet at a time. Cookies should be slightly golden, remove quickly as once they start to brown, they could burn fast. Immediately slide foil off cookie sheet and leave cookies on foil to cool. Repeat with remaining dough. Store in a wax paper lined, cookie tin. Cookies reach their taste potential after a day and will stay fresh in a cookie tin approximatelly 3 weeks. Actual yield is based on the size cookie cutter used. I use a very small size, approximately 1 1/2 " across.