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Sweet Things Traditional German Recipes

Cinnamon Stars / Zimtsterne

1 month to go till Christmas …. Time to bake some Christmas cookies. The first time I made those Cinnamon Stars was in primary school. Ever since they were in the back of my head. When I made them again last Christmas in Stavanger, Norway the whole office was completely crazy about them. Now they had a new recipe to change others around, because Norwegian tradition dictates to bake 7 different kinds of Christmas cookies. In Germany we don’t have such a tradition – you may bake as many or little kinds as you like.

With this easy recipe for Cinnamon Stars, I hope your family will be as crazy about the Zimtsterne, as my fellow colleagues were, which is why this will be my very first Christmas recipe for you.

For 2 baking trays Zimtsterne you need

  • 2 beaten egg whites
  • 300g / 10.5oz icing sugar
  • 500g /17.5oz ground almonds
  • 2 tsp cinnamon (or more if you want a more intense taste)
  • 2 tbsp almond liquor
  • 2 drops of bitter almond fragrance

For the icing of the Cinnamon Stars

  • 1 egg white
  • 125g /4.5oz icing sugar
  1. Mix all the ingredients together and roll the dough out on top of cellophane, so they won’t stick to your working surface. Don’t worry, the dough will be quite dry.
  2. Roll the dough quite thick, as the stars won’t get bigger during baking and by that they stay softer for longer.dough
  3. Although they are called stars, use any cookie cutter you have and put them on a baking baking tray covered with baking paper.
  4. Mix the egg white and the icing sugar for the icing and apply on top and the sides of the stars with a brush. If you have food coloring available, use that to give the cookies some color.
  5. cinnamon starsBake the “Zimtsterne” in this case hearts for about 10 minutes at 150°C (300°F). The icing should be still white and the cookies soft.
  6. Store them well in a tight cookie box. Then they should last 2-3 weeks, unless the whole family eats them before.

By Juli

For you, if you would like to come to Germany or find out more about the country ... this blog is written about my home, because despite all the love I have for traveling to far away countries, home is where your heart is.
So, let me show you my country.

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