Spitzbuben Cookies (German Jam Sandwich Cookies)

4.73 from 11 votes

Traditional German Spitzbuben cookies made with almond shortcrust pastry and filled with jam. A classic Christmas jam sandwich cookie recipe.

Prep Time40

Cook Time12

Total Time52

Course: Cookies

Cuisine: German

Servings: cookies

Calories: 184kcal

Author: Adina

Combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and vanilla sugar/vanilla extract in the food processor or stand mixer. Pulse to mix.
3 cups all-purpose flour + 1 teaspoon baking powder + 1 cup granulated sugar + 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Add the cold butter pieces, egg white, ground almonds, and pulse until you obtain a crumbly mixture.
1 cup unsalted butter + 1 egg white + 1¼ cup ground almonds
Refrigerate: Turn pastry onto the working surface, press briefly to form a disc, wrap in plastic wrap/cling film, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350°F/ 180°C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Cut pastry: Divide the dough in two. Sprinkle a little flour on the working surface and roll half the dough about 4 mm/0.15 inch thick. Place the rest of the pastry in the fridge. Cut out stars using a star cutter with a diameter of about 6 cm/ 2.5 inches. Place half of these stars on the baking sheet.
Use another smaller star cutter (or a piping nozzle) to cut another little star in the middle of the remaining stars.
Bake for about 10-12 minutes or until slightly golden. Take out of the oven, let sit on the tray for about 5-10 minutes to set slightly. Transfer to wire racks and leave to cool completely.
Second batch: In the meantime, roll and cut the rest of the pastry. Repeat the process until all the pastry is used.

Mix: When all the cookies are completely cool, mix the icing sugar with one or two tablespoons of lemon juice to obtain a thick paste.
1 cup confectioners' sugar + 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
Decorate: Either spread this paste on the perforated cookies or place the paste into a small piping bag and mark the edges of the cookies. Sprinkle with some granulated sugar and leave to dry out well.
a pinch of granulated sugar

Heat jam: If using chunky jam, blend until smooth. When the cookies are dry, place the jam or jelly in a small pan and heat it up a bit to make it soft and smooth.
¾ cup jam/ jelly of choice
Fill with jam: Brush the whole stars with a thin layer of jam, place a perforated star on top, and press gently. Fill the hole of the star with some more jam and leave to set.

Measurements: Please use a kitchen scale in baking; cup measuring is too inaccurate.
The amount of icing listed is enough to pipe a decorative edge around the star-shaped cookies. If you want to fully cover the cookies with icing, you’ll need about double the amount.
Jam: You can use any favorite jam that is on the tart side. I use redcurrant jelly most of the time. Alternatively, use sour cherry, plum, raspberry, or blackberry jam. Other, less traditional but great jam options are apricot jam, lemon jelly, and orange marmalade.
Texture of the jam: If using a jam with seeds in it, pass the jam through a sieve to remove the seeds. If using jam with chunks of fruit in it, blend the jam until smooth.