Recipe: Opa's Spritz Cookies

My family is very proud of our Dutch heritage.  After WWII my Oma & Ope (grandparents) moved to the U.S. to start a new life and a family.  My Opa left the family bakery he was to inherit and baked cookies in the U.S. until he had his feet under him and could start a carpentry business building houses.  He worked hard and honestly and many would say achieved the "American Dream".  My mother was able to gather a couple of the old recipes from him.

Spritz Cookies

5 part sugar
7 1/2 part butter
10 part flour
1/2 cup water or milk (more flavor)
couple drops vanilla extract (or almond)

Cream butter
Add sugar
Add water or milk
Mix all ingredients together 1 at a time
Add vanilla extract (or almond)
Fold flour in (don't mix or overwork)

Put in pastry bag and pipe onto cookie sheet (cookies will flatten out and expand)

Bake at 250 or 300 until cookies are a little brown on edge (sugar burns easily)


Freya's Score: 8  - easy to make and delicious subtle flavors, nice contrast to brownies and other chocolate cookies in flavor and appearance

I've only seen my Opa make Spritz cookies once.  He made them when we visited for Christmas one year and they are delicious.  I was surprised to notice that while all American recipes call for an egg, his does not.  I was faithful to this recipe (although I did substitute almond extract for vanilla) and the result was deliciously thin butter colored cookies.  They are far superior to the traditional sugar cookies in my opinion.