12 german cookie recipes

German gingerbread cookies (Lebkuchen-style) with ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and dark molasses. A classic Christmas cookie that bakes drop-style or chills overnight for cookie-cutter shapes.

German Christmas cookies (Anisplaetzchen style) flavored with anise seeds and rolled thin for cutting into shapes. A heritage holiday recipe that scales generously for a large cookie tray.

It all began in a small village in the Black Forest of Germany, where a group of mischievous elves tried creating a cookie to make people dance joyfully. They stumbled upon anise, a magical spice with a sweet and licorice-like flavor, and decided to use it in their cookie recipe.

Kekstorte is a classic German no-bake cookie cake layering crisp butter cookies with rum-spiked cocoa-coconut cream, chilled overnight in a loaf pan until sliceable and rich.

Fudgey German chocolate sandwich cookies pair two chewy chocolate cookies with a buttery coconut-pecan caramel filling. The flavors of classic German chocolate cake reimagined as a portable cookie.

Pfeffernuesse German pepper cookies with molasses, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and black pepper, rolled in powdered sugar. Small, spicy, and deeply aromatic holiday cookies from the old country.

Pfeffernusse-style German pepper cookies with white pepper, cinnamon, mixed spice, candied peel, and lemon zest. Small, puffy spice balls dusted in powdered sugar.

German loaf cookies (Zwieback-style) with lemon zest, almond extract, and a cocoa-cinnamon swirl. Baked as a log, sliced, then broiled crisp for a twice-baked biscotti-like crunch.

German filbert cookies shape buttery hazelnut dough into delicate crescents and dust them in powdered sugar or dip in chocolate. Holiday cookie classic with deep nutty flavor.

German chocolate cookies are a 4-ingredient shortcut bake using German chocolate cake mix, vanilla yogurt, an egg, and a topping of coconut-pecan frosting. Soft, chewy, and ready fast.

Buttery and chocolaty. These cookies are soft in the inside and crunchy at the outside. Nobody can resist these yummy bites.

German chocolate brownie cookies marry fudgy cocoa cookies with the classic coconut-pecan caramel topping. Brown-sugar dough loaded with chocolate chips, crowned candy-bar style.