Last winter, I got a few requests for spritz cookie recipes. I had to be honest – I hadn’t made spritz cookies since I was a kid. I didn’t remember them being particularly good and I did remember them bing kind of a pain in the butt and making a huge mess. The spritz gun always got clogged and the shapes never seemed to come out quite right. Apparently they’ve come a long way since the ’80s though – these spritz cookies were a breeze to make.
With the addition of hazelnut meal and instant espresso, they’re also incredibly delicious. I couldn’t stop eating the raw dough and I can’t stop eating the baked cookies either. Luckily, the recipe makes a ton and they keep well (I’ve had some on the counter in plastic bags for a week and they’re still as good as the day I made them; they also freeze nicely for long-term storage.)
They’re rich and buttery and not too sweet (they might not be super popular with kids.) Along with a cup of espresso, they make a great afternoon pick-me-up.
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and, once again, OXO is getting ready for their annual program benefiting Cookies for Kids Cancer and the Be A Good Cookie campaign. Cookies for Kids Cancer was started by two OXO employees when their son was diagnosed with neuroblastoma. It’s a cause that I’m always happy to support, but this year it’s especially near-and dear to my heart because one of my friends from college is going through a similar struggle with his son. Watching everything unfold is completely heartbreaking. It makes me feel so helpless and small. No family – and certainly no child – should have to deal with that.
Like last year, OXO is donating $100 for every blog post dedicated to childhood cancer. (This year, I’ll be matching that donation myself. It’s the least I can do.) Additionally, throughout September, OXO will donate 25-cents to pediatric cancer research for every item purchased that has a green “Cookies for Kids Cancer” sticker on it.*
You can see a list of eligible product here – I definitely recommend the cookie press if you don’t have one already. I couldn’t believe how easy it was to use (and clean up!) and I’ll definitely be making more spritz cookies this winter.
Ingredients
- ¾ cups 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons instant espresso granules
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup hazelnut meal
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400ºF.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg. Stir in the espresso. Stir in the flour and hazelnut meal until combined into a thick dough.
- Use a rubber spatula to pack the dough into a cookie press. Press dough onto an ungreased baking sheet, leaving about 1 inch between cookies.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. Remove from the cookie sheet and let cool on a baking rack. Repeat with remaining dough, allowing the cookie sheet to cool between batches.
Notes
I was not paid for this post; however OXO sent me a baking kit including the cookie press and spatulas and they will be donating $100 to every post dedicated to the Cookies For Kids Cancer Campaign in September.
*In 2014, OXO will donate up to $100,000 to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer through specially marked baking tools, bake sale matches and other fundraising efforts. Cookies for Kids’ Cancer is a recognized 501c(3) public charity duly incorporated under the laws of the state of New Jersey. Your donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowable by law. 100% of proceeds raised by Cookies for Kids’ Cancer fund pediatric cancer research.
Has anyone used cocoa powder instead of espresso? LOVE chocolate hazelnut!
I bet that would be delicious!
This recipe is great. At first, I misunderstood the butter. 3/4 cups = 12 tablespoons. I did just that and the cookies came out perfect. I did not have any issues with the dough. Thank you for this great recipe.
Is Hazelnut meal the same as Hazelnut flour? Can I make Hazelnut meal by processing the nuts until real fine? These flavors sound delicious!
Yes, essentially. The meal includes the skins so it’s not as evenly colored as flour and is a little coarser but you can typically use them interchangably.
I’m giving spritz cookies as valentine gifts so am cutting my recipes in half but making several varities so all don’t taste the same. I like coffee in cookies and thought I’d try the coffee-hazelnut spritz, but I only have espresso powder and almond meal/flour on hand. Can I sub them in this recipe in the same quantity as listed? Cutting the recipe in half will yield approx. 3 dozen correct? Thanks.
I tried them four times just to see what the problem was. Same problem every single time: the dog would not come out properly. I compared your recipe to the one I’ve been using for close to 30 years, and I think the butter/flour ratio is off. I’m going to use the press with my old reliable recipe, to see if that might be part of the problem. I can tell you that that new press is so much more difficult to use then the 40-year-old press I’ve been using. I was a little surprised, I was just going to assume that the newer model would be so much simpler. But it’s extremely difficult to use, compared to my old faithful.
Hm. I’m surprised by that too since I love the new press. Although I never had any luck with the older style ones. What was going on with your dough? Was it too thick or too thin/sticky? I’ll retest the recipe on my end as soon as I can. I’m very curious to figure out what’s going on, since I know other people have had success with it…but I want it to work for everyone!
i’ve been baking for 40 years, and making sprints for almost that entire time. These cookies did not work using the press.
What went wrong? I’d love to help troubleshoot.
I made these yesterday and my husband LOVES them so much he won’t take them to his meeting to share. I must make them to share with friends/family and freeze for us. They are just wonderful and so easy to make! I didn’t look for hazelnut meal. I pulverized sliced almonds. Easy and on-hand.
I have almond meal/flour in my pantry. Thinking of using it w/ the espresso powder as substitution. I would thing the almond flavor would taste just as good as the hazelnut but perhaps not as pronounced since almond meal is pretty bland. Any thoughts?
I think it would be fine, just a slightly different flavor