Mocha Spritz Cookies

Name: Mocha Spritz Cookies
Prep time: 12 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 22 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons instant coffee granules; 1 tablespoon water; 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour; 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder; 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 2 sticks softened unsalted butter (softened); 1 cup granulated white sugar; 1 large egg; 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; 2 cups powdered sugar; 3 tablespoons water; 1 bottle red and green gel food coloring (optional); 1/8 teaspoon almond extract (optional)

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Sweet and crunchy Spritz cookies with the flavor of coffee and chocolate decorated with a drizzle of sugar glaze or a dusting of powdered sugar.

These Christmas cookies are perfect served with coffee after dinner.

Mocha Spritz Cookies piled on a decorative Christmas cookie stand.

Spritz cookies are one of the most popular Christmas cookies of all time.

If I had to guess I would say it is a tie between cut out sugar cookies and Spritz cookies for the top two Christmas cookies baked every year.

These small bite size cookies are delicious. You can make them in many different flavors and shapes.

For example these chocolate and coffee flavored Spritz cookies are great for the holiday but can also be made any time of the year.

Spritz cookies are great because you can make a large number of cookies at one time.

Most Spritz recipes will make between 75 and 95 cookies and a cookie press makes it very easy to make a large number of holiday shaped cookies.

10 ingredients is all you need to make Mocha Spritz cookies.

Mocha Spritz cookies ingredients measured out into individual bowls before baking.

instant coffee granules
warm water
all purpose flour
unsweetened cocoa powder
ground nutmeg
salt
unsalted butter, softened
granulated white sugar
large egg
vanilla extract

Glaze Ingredients

confectioners sugar
cool water
Green and red gel food coloring

Step by Step Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F. degrees.

Step 1: Mix the coffee granules and warm water in a small bowl. Mix until the coffee granules have dissolved with no large lumps visible. Set aside until needed.

Coffee granules dissolved in warm water in a small bowl.

Step 2: In a medium bowl using a whisk mix the flour, cocoa powder, nutmeg and salt together until well blended. No streaks of cocoa powder showing.

Mocha cookies dry ingredients combined in a medium glass bowl.

Step 3: In a large glass bowl, beat the softened butter until a pale yellow and light, and fluffy.

Butter that has been beating until a pale yellow in a glass bowl.

Step 4: Cream the sugar into the butter.

Creaming butter and sugar together to make Mocha Spritz cookies.

Step 5: Add the large egg, vanilla extract and coffee to the bowl.

Adding coffee flavoring to Spritz cookies dough.

Beat on medium until light and fluffy. About 3 minutes.

Step 6: Begin adding the dry ingredients to the bowl. Beat about ⅓ of the flour and cocoa mixture into the wet ingredients at a time.

Adding flour and cocoa powder to the Spritz dough.

Slowly adding the dry ingredients into the wet ensures that the dry ingredients are evenly beaten in. Beat on low until well blended.

Increase the mixer speed to medium once all of the flour is added. Beat for 2 minutes or until the flour is completely blended into the wet ingredients with no streaks of flour showing. Set aside.

The thick cookie dough batter for Mocha Spritz cookies in a bowl.

The Spritz cookie dough will be thick and slightly sticky. The dough needs to be sticky so when you press the cookie shape out onto the baking tray it will cling to the pan holding its shape.

Step 7: Attach a wreath or snowflake disk to the cookie press. Spoon the dough into the press barrel until it is filled completely. Push down on the dough to remove any air pockets.

Attach the handle and press the cookies out onto an ungreased aluminum baking sheet leaving about 1 inch space between the cookies.

Cookie press with a snowflake disk attached and a cookie sheet with the cookies pressed.

Step 8: Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 9 to 10 minutes or until the surface of the cookies look dry. Do not over bake.

Step 9: Immediately transfer the hot cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool. Use a thin metal spatula to pick the cookies up so the delicate cookie does not break.

Important NOTE: The mocha flavored cookies are very hard to remove from the cookie sheet if you wait until they are cool to transfer them to a cooling rack.

Step 10: Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.

Cool completely before decorating with a drizzle of powdered sugar glaze or a dusting of powdered sugar.

Check the recipe card below for the directions to decorate with a colorful sugar drizzle for the holiday season.

Mocha Spritz cookies decorated with white, red and green sugar drizzle.

An easy way to decorate Mocha Spritz cookies is to dust them with powdered sugar. It adds just the right hint of sweetness to the chocolate and coffee flavored cookies.

Cookies dusted with powdered sugar on a holiday plate.

Storing Spritz Cookies

Spritz cookies should be stored in an airtight container to keep them fresh. Properly stored Spritz cookies will stay fresh and last for two weeks when stored in an air tight container.

Spritz cookies are perfect cookie swap or exchange cookies. This recipe will make about 85 cookies.

Recipe FAQs

Why are spritz cookies called spritz?

Spritz comes from the German word spritzen, which means to squirt. The soft Spritz dough is squirted or pushed through a cookie press to make the cookie designs.

Can you use parchment paper for spritz cookies?

You should not line your baking sheets with parchment paper when making Spritz cookies. The cookie need needs to cling to the cookie sheet when you press it through the cookie press. The dough will not cling to parchment paper and the cookies will not hold their shape.

Why are my spritz cookies tough?

Do not overmix Spritz cookie dough. Overmixing will cause the Spritz cookies to be tough.

Expert Recipe Tips

Spritz cookie dough: Do not chill the dough before pressing them. Spritz cookie dough needs to be soft.
Use pure extracts: when making cookies or baking treats always use pure vanilla or almond extract for the best and purest flavors. Don't ruin your recipe by using artificial flavorings that always seem to have a weird flavor.
Baked cookies: The added coffee makes these cookies stick to the tray if they are allowed to cool. Immediately remove them from the baking tray while hot.