Baking during the holiday season: What can you bake for Christmas?
- What are typical Christmas baked goods?
- What can you bake for Christmas?
- Why do we bake Christmas cookies?
- When should you start baking for Christmas?
- How do you keep Christmas cookies fresh?
- What is the most popular Christmas cookie in Germany?
- Christmas Cookies from Around the World – What Kinds of Cookies Are Baked in Other Countries?
- What can you bake as a Christmas gift?
Beyond cozy family time and the scent of pine needles, freshly baked Christmas cookies and biscuits are what truly make the holiday season special. As the saying goes: there are many delicacies to be found in the holiday bakery. Engaging in Christmas baking is the perfect way to let your anticipation for the festive season blossom. In our 264 baking classes across 72 baking schools, you can sharpen your skills and master the art of baking.
Here, you will discover which Christmas treats should not be missing from your list this year, where the tradition of holiday baking originates, and how to keep your homemade cookies fresh for as long as possible.
What are typical Christmas baked goods?
Classic Christmas pastries include not only Stollen and gingerbread but also a vast variety of biscuits and cookies.
Typical festive treats include:
- **Stollen:** Poppy seed, raisin, butter, almond, nut, or marzipan Stollen.
- **Gingerbread:**Filled gingerbread, Elisen Lebkuchen, chocolate-covered gingerbread, or the iconic gingerbread house.
- Spekulatius
- Various Christmas cookies: Butter cookies, Florentines, macaroons, Cinnamon Stars, Spritzgebäck (piped cookies), Bethmännchen, anise cookies, Vanilla Crescents, Springerle, Printen, and more.
- Festive Pralines and truffles.
What can you bake for Christmas?
When it comes to holiday baking ideas, the sky is the limit. Sweet pastries and bakes featuring cinnamon, cloves, and gingerbread spice are particularly popular. From gingerbread recipes to traditional German Stollen, baking together is a core part of the holiday experience.
Why do we bake Christmas cookies?
It is difficult to say with certainty where the tradition of baking cookies originated. There are various theories and legends on this subject.
One theory suggests that the Celts baked cookies to celebrate the winter solstice even before the birth of Christ. This longest night of the year occurs shortly before Christmas. People feared being haunted by ghosts during the long hours of darkness. According to the story, they sought to protect themselves by offering homemade animal-shaped cookies made of dough as sacrifices.
The second tradition dates back to the Middle Ages: According to this account, Christmas cookies were baked in many monasteries at that time to celebrate the birth of Christ. Spices were very expensive back then. With these homemade Christmas cookies, the monks were able to bring joy to poorer people during the Christmas season.
Whichever theory is correct, the joy of these cookies has clearly endured to this day. For many people, traditional Christmas baking is an integral part of the Advent season. And not just at home—in bakeries as well, cookies are a major part of Christmas baking.
When should you start baking for Christmas?
To ensure your holiday treats are perfect by Christmas Eve, timing is key. A common rule of thumb is to start around the first Sunday of Advent. However, some Christmas recipes need time to mature to develop their full aroma.
This overview shows you when you should start making which Christmas treats:
Christmas Treats | Start Date | Baking Tips for Storage |
|---|---|---|
Christmas fruit bread and Christstollen | 6 weeks before Christmas | The treats should be left to rest for a few weeks to develop their full flavor. |
Printen and gingerbread | 4 to 6 weeks before Christmas | Leave them out uncovered for a day after baking so the gingerbread becomes nice and soft. These Christmas treats also taste best after a few weeks of storage. |
Shortbread cookies and spritz cookies | 1 to 4 weeks before Christmas | These Christmas cookies taste best when freshly baked. |
Cinnamon stars and macaroons | 1 to 3 weeks before Christmas | These cookies taste best when freshly baked during the first few days. |
Vanilla crescents | 1 to 2 weeks before Christmas | After one to two weeks, they develop their delicious vanilla aroma. |
Christmas chocolates | 1 week before Christmas | When stored in a cool place, these homemade chocolates stay fresh for a week. |
Quark Stollen | 1 week before Christmas | Quark Stollen cannot be stored as long as other varieties. Best enjoyed during the first week. |
To come back to the question of when is the best time to start baking cookies: It’s best to never stop! ;-) Most cookies and gingerbread are long-lasting baked goods, meaning they keep for a very long time if stored properly.
How do you keep Christmas cookies fresh?
Before storing your Christmas cookies, it’s important to let them cool completely. Also, any decorations like icing or chocolate should be thoroughly dry so the cookies don’t stick together in the cookie jar and still look great come Christmas.
You should not store homemade cookies in warm rooms. For storage, it’s best to choose an airtight cookie jar made of plastic or tin. If you want to make sure your cookies stay fresh as long as possible, store each type of cookie in its own jar or separate them with paper. This prevents the ingredients and aroma of one type of cookie from transferring to the others.
How long do homemade cookies last?
How long cookies last varies from one type to another. Gingerbread, shortbread, and shortcrust cookies are considered long-lasting baked goods and can therefore be stored for many weeks. Macarons and cinnamon stars last for about three weeks. Vanilla crescents usually last two weeks. If your cookies are filled with cream or jam, it’s best to enjoy them within a week.
If you’ve been baking nonstop for Christmas this year, don’t worry: most cookies can also be frozen.
What is the most popular Christmas cookie in Germany?
Two-thirds of Germans bake cookies and Christmas treats during the holiday season. Of course, everyone has their own preferences when it comes to Christmas cookies. According to a Forsa survey, the most popular cookies in Germany include:
- Cut-out cookies
- Vanilla crescents
- Shortbread cookies with jam
- Spritz cookies with chocolate icing
- Nut cookies
- Coconut macaroons with wafer or chocolate glaze
- Cinnamon stars
- Black-and-white cookies
- Gingerbread
- Anise cookies
According to Forsa, the majority of Christmas bakers in Germany still use classic table sugar (86%). Others prefer to sweeten their cookies with alternative natural sweeteners such as honey, maple syrup, or agave syrup, or bake their cookies with coconut blossom sugar (9%). Only 2 percent of respondents said they bake their Christmas cookies with birch sugar or erythritol, and 1 percent use the sugar alternative stevia to sweeten the cookie dough.
Christmas Cookies from Around the World – What Kinds of Cookies Are Baked in Other Countries?
Want to try something new this year? After all, Christmas is celebrated pretty much all over the world. Here you can find out what kinds of Christmas cookies are baked in other countries.
Christmas treats from around the world – these Christmas delicacies are baked in other countries:
Country | Typical Christmas treat | Special features |
|---|---|---|
Spain | Turrones | Special nougat with almonds and honey |
Portugal | Sonhos de natal | Sweet Portuguese doughnuts |
Italy | Panettone | Italian Christmas stollen |
Czech Republic | Vosí hnízda (Wasp Nests) | Wheat pastries filled with egg yolk cream |
Poland | Kołaczki | Cookies filled with jam |
Greece | Melomakarona | Christmas cookies made with honey and walnuts, with a hint of citrus |
Australia | Anzac Cookies | Christmas cookies made with oatmeal |
Norway | Goro | Christmas waffles with cardamom and vanilla |
Egypt | Khak | Christmas cookies with dates and sesame seeds |
Chile | Empolvados | Cookies with a milk caramel filling |
Brazil | Brigadeiros | Chocolate-sprinkled balls made of condensed milk, cocoa, and butter |
USA | Gingerbread Cookies | Cookies with ginger, cloves, and nutmeg, sweetened with honey |
France | Galette des Rois | Puff pastry cake with almond cream, baked on January 6 in honor of the Three Kings |
Baking as a team? Your special Christmas party! Together, we’ll whip up delicious treats and strengthen team spirit. Book your next Christmas party now!
What can you bake as a Christmas gift?
You can easily bake a few Christmas gifts yourself! And homemade gifts are often something truly special because they come from the heart.
We’ve put together some gift ideas from our Christmas bakery for you:
- Homemade cookie mix in a jar
- Make your own chocolate
- A beautifully decorated gingerbread house
- Homemade Christmas cookies
- Homemade chocolates
- Caramelized almonds
- Hot chocolate on a stick
- Homemade crunchy bars
- Apple punch jam
- Mini cakes in a jar
