Engelsaugen (German Thumbprint Cookies)

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These traditional German thumbprint cookies known as Engelsaugen (“angel eyes”) are delicious buttery shortbread cookies flavored with vanilla and lemon and filled with raspberry jam. They’re easy to make and utterly wonderful!

Christmas in Germany is magical and of my favorite aspects of the holiday season are all the traditional German Christmas bakes. Growing up in Southern Germany, every year at the start of the Christmas season my Mutti and I would roll up our sleeves and get to work making all of our favorite seasonal bakes, everything from Stollen to Lebkuchen and all of our favorite cookies. These Engelsaugen are a favorite throughout Germany and are sure to become a favorite in your home. And be sure to check out ALL of my favorite traditional German Christmas Cookies!

What Are Engelsaugen?

Engelsaugen, or “angel eyes”, are a traditional German cookie that is enjoyed all year round but particularly at Christmastime. Made out of Mürbteig, or sweet shortcrust pastry, the dough is rolled into balls, an indentation is pressed into them, they’re filled with jam (usually raspberry or red currant jelly), baked and dusted with powdered sugar. They’re basically German thumbprint cookies. As is characteristic of a lot of German baking, the inclusion of lemon zest is a must and is a distinguishing characteristic from other thumbprint cookies.

German Thumbprint Cookies Ingredients

These cookies are made with just a handful of ingredients which you likely already have in your pantry. Here is what you’ll need to make them:

• Flour: In Germany the most commonly used flour for all-purpose baking is called Typ 405 Mehl which is made from soft wheat for a lower protein content and is milled extra fine. The equivalent outside of Germany is pastry flour or Italian 00 flour. If you don’t have access to pastry flour you can substitute regular all-purpose flour.
• Butter: The ingredients in these cookies are simple with much of the flavor being derived from the butter, so the better the butter the better the cookies. Use unsalted and make sure it’s softened to room temperature before mixing the dough.
• Sugar: Some recipes call for powdered sugar and some for granulated sugar. I prefer the texture of produced with powdered sugar. As is typical of German baked goods, these cookies are not overly sweet and a good amount of their sweetness comes from the jam filling. If you prefer them sweeter, you can add up to 1/4 cup of additional powdered sugar. You’ll also need some extra powdered sugar for dusting.
• Vanilla Sugar: This is the most common way that vanilla flavor is added to German baked goods. I don’t know what it is about it that gives baked goods that distinctly “German flavor” that is different than if using vanilla extract, but there is definitely something distinct about it. In Germany you can find vanilla sugar packets in every store. A standard packet contains roughly 2 teaspoons of vanilla sugar if you make your own and would like to use it. Alternatively, you can substitute 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract.
• Eggs: Mürbteig (German shortcrust pastry) is made with just the egg yolks, so reserve those egg whites for another purpose (e.g. make some German Kokosmakronen or Haselnussmakronen, two other traditional German Christmas cookies). In Germany size medium eggs are the most common but you can use large yolks in this recipe. If the dough seems a little too sticky, add a little more flour.
• Lemon Zest: A hallmark ingredient in German baking, lemon zest really enhances the flavor of many bakes. Zest the lemon finely so you don’t end up with long strands in your Engelsaugen.
• Salt: Just a pinch.
• Jam: In Germany the traditional choices are either raspberry jam or red currant jelly. I like both but my favorite for these cookies is raspberry.

Engelsaugen Recipe

Let’s get started!

Place the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and stir to combine. All all of the remaining ingredients except for the jam. Stir on low speed until the mixture comes together and then increase the speed to medium until you get a smooth dough. If the dough is too sticky, add a little more flour. Form the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight (overnight will enhance the flavor). Note: You can also use a high-powered hand mixer or knead the mixture by hand.

Preheat the oven to 350 F / 180 C. Divide the dough into 20 balls, roughly 3/4 inch (just under 2 cm) in diameter. You can either increase or decrease the size according to your preference. Lay the balls out on a lined or non-stick cookie sheet so that they’re about an inch apart. Use the end of a large wooden spoon or the back of a round teaspoon scoop to press indentations into the center of balls, being careful not to press all the way through the dough. Dip the end of the wooden spoon or bottom of the teaspoon in flour if it starts to stick to the dough. Fill the indentations with jam.

Bake the cookies on the middle rack for 10-15 minutes until the edges just barely start to turn light golden. The cookies should be light in color. Let them sit for a couple of minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely, then lightly dust them with powdered sugar.

Store the Engelsaugen in an airtight container at room temperature where they will keep for 5-7 days (refrigerated they’ll keep for up to 2 weeks; let them come to room temp before eating).

Enjoy!

For more traditional German Christmas bakes try my:

• Pfeffernüsse
• Stollen
• Lebkuchen
• Springerle
• Gugelhupf
• Berliner Brot
• Printen 
• Speculoos 
• Vanillekipferl 
• Zimtsterne
• Bethmännchen 
• Marzipan
• Heidesand 
• Dampfnudel