Classic Spritz Cookies

The 1950s are perhaps the decade with the most modern nostalgia attached to it — including the iconic spritz cookie. The mythology behind the decade is strong: It was a time when the nuclear family reigned, and kids rode their bikes unsupervised until sundown in safe suburbs with soda fountains and movie theaters. It’s a nice fantasy, but a fantasy it was.

Suburbs were a response to two decades of pent-up demand for housing, hampered by the Great Depression and the war, and the tiny cookie-cutter houses were rarely as great as television remembers them. Racial strife, McCarthyism, and other signs of growing authoritarianism also marked the decade. The reimposition of “traditional” family values postwar were a response to increased social and economic freedom for women while men were away at war. To keep the economy from collapsing under the weight of too much labor, women were forced to give up their jobs to returning GIs, and many of the social services designed to help women work, including government-sponsored childcare, ended with the war. 

But while the best parts of total war mobilization were ending, so were the worst parts. Sugar rationing was the last to end in 1947, and as American manufacturing rebuilt Europe, the economy boomed. Eager to put the privations of wartime behind them, Americans embraced food excesses — rich, fatty, sugary dishes larded with plenty of meat and carbs. And although the 1950s gave us some of America’s most influential gastronomes, it also gave us plenty of corporate admen determined to market convenience foods to bored housewives who dreamed of something more than being stuck in the kitchen all day. 

Returning GIs who had experienced food in Europe and the Pacific brought their tastes for new things home with them. “Polynesian” cuisine and tiki bars became popular, but interest in European cuisines, from French haute cuisine to peasant food, increased in popularity, too. Scandinavian smorgasbords, in particular, were served alongside the new Danish style modern furniture that graced many homes. When it came to Christmas, for the first time in nearly two decades, baking supplies were affordable and widely available. Scandinavian cookies, in particular, grew in popularity in circles outside of Scandinavian-Americans, and spritz were among the easiest and tastiest to make. 

Although popular in Scandinavia, the cookie may have originated in Germany, as the term “spritz” is similar to the German word “spritzen,” meaning “to squirt.” By the 20th century, however, spritz were popular throughout the Scandinavian countries, and perhaps the association with Germany was one Americans were eager to forget after the Second World War.

Also known as Wreath Cookies, S Cookies, and other similar names, spritz were composed almost entirely of butter, sugar, and refined white flour, representing a return to economic wealth and prosperity. And they also required special equipment. Cookie presses, which need a soft, delicate, butter-rich dough to work best, were invented in the 1930s and were gaining in popularity in the 1940s. Spritz were the ideal cookie to use the fashionable presses. The original design was simply a ridged rope of dough shaped into an S or O shape, but with American ingenuity, special designs were developed for the presses, including wreaths, stars, Christmas trees, and others (for bridge parties, shapes of the playing card suits — diamonds, clubs, hearts, and spades — were especially popular). Some cookies were decorated with bits of candied fruit, colored sugar, or sprinkles, but the classic is served plain. 

This recipe is from Ann Pillsbury’s Baking Book, published in 1951. Like her more famous counterpart, Betty Crocker, Ann Pillsbury was a fictional home economist invented specifically to market Pillsbury flour. She “wrote” several cookbooks, gave advice, and asked for Pillsbury customers to submit their favorite recipes using Pillsbury flour. The cookie section of the Baking Book includes Christmas cookies from nations all over the world, but Scandinavia dominates.

Before you preheat the oven, gear up with these cookie-making essentials.

• The Sheet Pan Every Kitchn Editor Owns: This sturdy, won’t-ever-warp pan is great for cranking out a ton of picture-perfect sweets. Bonus: It comes in great colors, which makes baking even more fun.
• Our Tried-and-Tested Favorite Cooling Rack: We love these racks for their criss-cross design, which adds stability, makes sure your precious treats won’t slip though, and prevents the rack from wobbling or warping.
• The Little Spatula That Every Baker Needs: This thin-but-sturdy spatula is great for gently loosening your cookies from the pan and transferring them to the cooling rack. It’s particularly handy for moving small or delicate treats.