Top 20 German Dessert and Treat Recipes
Cookies and gingerbread abound in Germany, especially at Christmastime. But the cuisine also produces some delectable desserts and other treats that can all be produced in your very own kitchen.
Breads and pastries, cakes and donuts, Germany has evolved some of the finest, so let’s discover the sweet side of German cuisine.
If you’re looking for something savory instead, check out our round-up of the best 24 German foods.
1. Nussecken
Nussecken, or nut corner, is a tasty 3-layered cookie: a buttery shortbread base, spread with jam or macaroon, and topped with a layer of caramelized nuts, typically hazelnuts but you could find them with almonds.
Once baked, the nussecken are cut up, traditionally into triangles or rectangles, so their edges can be coated with chocolate. You’ll find these more-ish morsels in any bakery, and they are pretty cheap too.
2. Käsestangen
Not all delicacies are sweet. Käsestangen, or cheese sticks, are layers of puff pastry filled with Parmesan and paprika. The flat pastry is cut into strips, twisted like a corkscrew, and sprinkled with more cheese. They are baked til golden and make a tasty little snack or side for your dinner.
You could also add poppy, sesame, or caraway seeds to the filling, which makes a nice little alternative.
3. Hefezopf
For those special occasions, such as Easter or New Year, Germans like to serve a special bread. Braiding loaves is a historic tradition in the region, going back many years. This sweet-ish Hefezopf is a yeast dough made with egg and butter.
Once kneaded, it is divided into three, rolled and braided, coated with milk, to help with browning, and sprinkled with sliced almonds or sugar.
There are many variations, including adding raisins, chocolate, spices, nuts or poppy seeds. It is often placed as a table decoration for New Year’s Eve.
4. Franzbrötchen
Franzbrötchen is a sweet pastry made with a special Danish pastry-like dough filled with sugar and cinnamon. It is a specialty from Hamburg and is often served with coffee and cake, which is seen as a legitimate fourth meal in Germany, or with breakfast.
There are also variations of Franzbrötchen with raisins, crumble, chocolate chips, marzipan, poppy seeds, or pumpkin seeds. Children love these treats, so it’s good they are quick to prepare!
5. Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (Black Forest Cake)
The forever popular Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (Black Forest cake) has been around in Germany for almost 100 years, though only recently became one of the most popular in the country.
It is the ultimate combination of chocolate cake and cherries, and includes Kirsch, cream, cherries, and chocolate flakes sitting on top.
It is these chocolate flakes that possibly led to its name, as they resembles a forest, of which Germany’s Black Forest is the most well known. Today, the term “Black Forest” is used for a wide variety of products – cream rolls, yogurt, ice cream – and usually refers to that classy combination of cherries and chocolate.
Related: Best 19 Kirsch Substitutes
6. Rote Grütze
A delicious thing to do with summer fruit, this rote (red) dish resembles a fruit compôte. What makes it different is the grütze, which refers to the starch, from wheat, corn, potatoes or rice, that gives the juice a thicker consistency.
The classic recipe calls for currants and raspberries boiled in water and strained through a sieve, flavored with lemon, vanilla, wine, or spirits, depending on preference. Whole fruits are added to give it more flavor and it is topped with whipped cream, vanilla sauce, or ice cream.
7. Schneeball
Schneeball, or snow ball, is a yummy little ball of deep fried shortcrust pastry dusted with powdered sugar – or chocolate, nuts, marzipan, and more…
They were once reserved for special occasions such as weddings but can now be purchased from most bakeries, pastry shops, and cafés, especially around Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Dinkelsbühl in Bavaria, Germany. Though, you don’t have to travel to Germany to taste them as they are perfectly doable at home.
8. Dresdner Weihnachtsstollen
Now this is something that traditionally comes out at Christmas. When friends and families get together they converse over a few slices of Stollen and a good coffee to start off the season.
While sweet, it is a bread made with heavy yeast dough, with dried fruits (often raisins), marzipan and/or poppy seeds mixed in.
9. Quarkbällchen
The German variation of fried dough balls involves quark, hence Quarkbällchen. Small pieces of yeast dough are deep fried in hot fat for 4 to 6 minutes and then sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon. Another Christmas tradition, they are often sold at a Christmas markets, but what a treat for the young ones if you make them at home!
10. Berliner Pfannkuchen
Donuts are always a crowd pleaser and these Berliner Pfannkuchen are no different. A deep fried sweet yeast dough is filled with jam and dusted with powdered sugar or covered with a sugar glaze.
Of course, you could also fill them with cream, or vanilla cream, nougat, or liquers even, particularly eggnog.
11. Spritzring
Spritzring, cookies with a hole, are made with a very sweet dough piped into rings with a star-shaped piping bag nozzle. But these cookies are not baked; they are cooked by floating them on hot fat.
Once drained, they are sprinkled with powdered sugar or glazed with fondant. Very sweet but very more-ish.
12. Bienenstich
This crumbly, spongy caked is filled with cream or buttercream or vanilla cream – or whatever takes your fancy. But it is always topped with a fat-sugar-almond mixture that caramelizes when baked. Which might be why it’s named Bienenstich, or bee sting.
13. Lebkuchen
This German Christmas tradition is perfect for bringing the family together and getting the children involved in the baking. Let them get creative with the dough, forming it into different fun shapes.
Once baked, they can decorate the cookie-like pastries with icing or chocolate and paint funny faces on them.
Related: Most Popular German Christmas Foods
14. Mohnschnecke
A spiral of soft pastry filled with poppy seeds, these are a typical German pastry and can be found in many bakeries. They are sweet and delicious and drizzled with sugar icing.
15. Windbeutel
Windbeutel are a very versatile pastry. Fill them with whipped cream or vanilla cream and serve with extra fruit such as cheeries or even jam for a sweet treat. Or fill them with quark, cream cheese or avocado for something savory.
For the best Windbeutel, pipe the dough onto a baking sheet and once out of the oven, cut them in half while still hot and fill them once they have cooled.
16. Spekulatius
These spicy cookies are embellished with figurative designs, often Christmas themed. Like other German Christmas cookies, Spekulatius are sold as Advent or “autumn cookies” and found in stores in early autumn.
The most usual Spekulatius are spiced with cardamom, clove, and cinnamon, but you could always use almonds, giving a more subtle taste, and coat them with almond slivers before baking.
17. Zimtsterne
Christmas is a time for cookies in Germany and these go way back in German history. Zimtsterne are made with egg whites, sugar, lots of almonds, cinnamon, and a little flour, making a compact dough that is easy to roll out.
They are left to dry for a while, then coated in an egg white glaze and cut into stars. They are then baked on a low heat, allowing the egg white glaze to congeal but not color.
18. Karottenkuchen
Karottenkuchen is a highly popular cake – it’s made with carrots so must be good for you! It is usually topped with a cream cheese icing, but can also be dusted with powdered sugar.
Tinged with orange, Karottenkuchen is particularly popular around Easter time.
19. Schokoküsse (Dickmann)
These funny-looking sweets are made from soft foam sugar, which is placed on a waffle and coated with chocolate or a butter glaze. The sugared protein foam, which is sometimes mixed with cocoa and/or rum flavor, is coated with white, milk, or dark chocolate.
They are often referred to as Dickmann, the company that makes them, rather than their real name Schokoküsse.
20. Bretzel
The pretzel has been the symbol of the baker’s trade since the Middle Ages and Bretzel are very popular in Bravaria, where you can find them in every bakery, and are sold at the famous Oktoberfest.
But you can also make them at home. Strands of pretzel dough are shaped and then sprinkled with salt, though a sweet version is possible.
Related: Most Popular German Foods
Related: Most Popular German Christmas Dishes
