SNOWMAN coconut spritz cookies, to be exact! Crisp and buttery, the snowman shape and coconut flavor make these cookies the perfect little treats for winter.
Jack gave me the coolest cookie press for Christmas. About 20 years ago, I bought an antique cookie press at a yard sale. Using it was an unmitigated disaster, and I pitched it. I was afraid of them after that, but this new one made making the cookies so easy!
This is the one I have now (thanks, Jack!). I love it...it's so simple to use!
A little spritz cookie history...
Before making these, I never thought about where the name, or cookie, originated. The word "spritz" comes from the German cookie, Spritzgebäck. Spritzen means squirt in German. Mmmm...appetizing. But, you get the idea - the dough "squirts" out from the cookie press. My source for this is Wikipedia, so take that with a grain of salt. Or a squirt of salt.
Spritz cookies are similar to shortbread in texture but not as sandy or heavy as they contain egg and usually a bit of baking powder. Mr. E loves butter cookies, and I buy him a tin each Christmas. I can't wait to bake a tin-full for him next time!
The secrets to successful spritz cookies...
1. Most importantly, the cookie dough must be pressed onto an ungreased, unlined, non-nonstick (you read that right) cookie sheet. This was difficult for me as I am the Queen of Parchment Paper. And, even though I use parchment paper for everything - most of my cookie sheets are, in fact, nonstick. I just think my cut-out cookies bake up nicer with that under the parchment.
2. The dough must be at room temperature. Unlike my go-to cut-out cookie recipe where I use cold butter, and the dough feels a little chilled, this dough is sticky. It helps it stick to the cookie sheet.
Making spritz cookie dough
I used the recipe that came with the press as a basis for my coconut spritz recipe. Given my past failure at using a press, I didn't want to experiment too much with the ratio of fat to flour.
To the basic recipe, I added chopped, unsweetened, shredded coconut and changed up the extracts a bit. I used salted butter - I love a good hit of salt with my sweet. When adding the coconut, be sure to chop it finely; otherwise, it'll get clogged in the press. (Please mentally add an egg to this photo.)
You'll cream the butter and sugar like a typical cookie recipe. Then add in the coconut, egg, milk, and extracts. The flour gets added in last.
The dough is quite sticky - and that's good as it'll stick to the cookie sheet that way.
Fill the cookie press and attach the bottom with the snowman disc (the three circles). Press out any air pockets, and start spritzing those cookies. You'll refill the press as you go. If you have any that don't come out perfectly, say you get two circles instead of three, keep going, then scrape all of the mistakes off of the cookie sheet and try again.
If you're using any sanding sugar, sparkling sugar, or nonpareils, sprinkle those on before baking. I used both clear sanding sugar (smaller granules) and sparkling sugar (larger granules). I couldn't decide which I liked better for the snowmen. Here's a post explaining the difference in more detail.
Bake them up! They take no time at all to whip up and make, oh, approximately a million cookies.
Look at that golden bottom! (Did you know snowmen had golden bottoms? Me, neither!)
Coconut Spritz Cookies
3 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups salted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped unsweetened shredded coconut
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350. Whisk flour and baking powder together. Set aside.
Cream the butter and sugar together for several minutes until combined and fluffy. Beat in the coconut, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl as needed. Beat in egg, milk, and extracts. Scrape bottom and sides of bowl.
Fill cookie press with dough. Do not chill dough; it will be sticky. Follow instructions for your particular press. Fit with snowman disc. My particular model has a click and press system. One click is one cookie.
Press shapes onto an ungreased sheet. Sprinkle with sanding or sparkling sugar. Bake for 9 minutes or until baked through. Let sit on the cookie sheet for 1-2 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack.
Do you have a cookie press? Any flavor spritz cookies you'd like to see here?
