When you grow up in Germany or Austria visiting Christmas Markets or Christkindlemarkets is very likely part of your yearly Christmas tradition. And the Christmas time would not be the same without all the amazing Christmas market food and sweet treats. Eating or drinking them is the best way to get into the Christmas spirit. And therefore it is no wonder that locals and travelers alike flock to the markets day after day.
And then there are times when it is not possible to visit a Christmas Market and the holiday season just does not feel right. You might miss out on the markets due to a cancellation of the markets like in 2020 or just because your travel plans do not allow you to go to one of the many Christmas markets around the globe. If you end up in one of these situations the best thing to do is to recreate all the Christmassy delicacies at home.
Therefore I am happy to share these traditional German recipes so you get the full experience of German Christmas Market food and drinks without having to leave the house or having to travel to Germany or Austria.
About these German Christmas Market Food Recipes
The Christmas Market food recipes in this post are only one of many ways to make these sweet Christmas treats. I chose to share the recipes my family has been using since I was a child because I love how everything tastes when following the recipes. However, this does not mean that other recipes aren’t just as good.
Even the traditional recipes for some of these Christmas Market treats vary depending on the region. Given the chance, you should definitely eat your favorite treat in different cities in Germany and Austria. Or while exploring some of the other amazing Christmas Markets in Europe.
Some of these Christmas Market food and drink recipes are really simple and don’t take a lot of time while others are more work-intensive. Similarly, you might have to venture to the supermarket to get the ingredients for some of these treats, while you should already have everything you need for others.
Rum: If a recipe includes rum, I used Havana Club. The only recipe where I used a different rum is Feuerzangenbowle, as the alcoholic concentration of the rum has to be above 50%.
Abbreviations: kp. = knifepoint; Tsp. = tablespoon; tsp. = teaspoon
Sweet Christmas Market Treats
Gebrannte Mandeln (Roasted Almonds)
The smell of roasted almonds can be one of the first things one notices as you approach a Christmas Market. Therefore it is no wonder that they are a real classic when it comes to Christmas Market food. There are different ways to make them, but the easiest and fastest one is by using a microwave.
You can also use this recipe if you want to make them in the oven, but I am not entirely sure how it affects the times listed in this recipe. My rough guess would be that you should double the times and pre-heat the oven at 180°C (360°F), but it might be a little bit more or less depending on your oven.
Ingredients
- 200 g unpared almonds
- 4 Tsp. brown sugar
- 2.5 Tsp. water
- (amaretto)
1. Add the sugar. cinnamon and water to a container with a lid that can be placed in a microwave. Heat it for 1 minute at 600 watts.
2. Add the unpared almonds to the mix, stir it and place the container back into the microwave for 2 minutes.
3. Stir the mix before putting it into the microwave again for another 2 minutes.
My Tip: Only use 1.5 Tsp. of water and add 1 Tsp. of (non-alcoholic) amaretto in the first step. Doing so adds to the flavor of the roasted almonds and makes them even more delicious. This version with amaretto might not be authentic Christmas Market food, but it is well worth it!
Kokosmandeln (Coconut Almonds)
Ingredients
- 200 g unpared almond
- 30 g powdered sugar
- 2 kp. cinnamon
- 100 g white chocolate
- 40 g coconut flakes
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F).
2. Spread the almonds on a griddle covered with baking paper. Powder them with a third of the powdered sugar and half of the cinnamon.
3. Put them in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Let the almonds cool down while melting the white chocolate.
5. Mix the remaining powdered sugar with the remaining cinnamon and the coconut flakes.
6. Pour the molten chocolate over the almonds and let the chocolate-covered almonds dry for a minute or two.
7. Put the chocolate almonds in a bowl and add half of the coconut flakes mix. Shake the bowl before adding the rest of the mix. Your almonds should now be entirely surrounded by chocolate and coconut flakes.
Printen
Printen are a local favorite when it comes to Christmas Market food. There are different kinds of Printen, but the only ‘real’ ones are those made in the region of Aachen. While the roots of this sweet treat are Belgian, the ‘original Aachener Printen’ have since become an EU-certified product that can only be produced in the area. I grew up eating loads of them every single holiday season and even now I cannot imagine the festive time without them.
Ingredients for 35 Printen
- 500 g sugar beat syrup
- 5 Tsp. rum
- 5 g potash
- 100 g sugar (sugar candy)
- 150 g cane sugar
- 600 g rye flour
- 3 Tsp. anis
- 2 Tsp. coriander
- 3 Tsp. cinnamon
- 1 pinch cardamom
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- 1 pinch baking soda
- 1 pinch allspice
1. Grind the sugar candy.
2. Mix the sugar beat syrup and the rum in a bowl. Dissolve the potash in a small amount of water and add it to the mix. Add the ground sugar candy.
3. Add all other ingredients to the dough and knead it. Let it rest for one or two nights.
4. Roll the dough on a flour-covered surface until it is 0.5 cm (0.2 inches) thick. I usually create snowball-sized dough balls and flatten them with my hand before I roll them. That way the dough is less likely to break and easier to handle.
4. Cut it into 3 x 9 cm (1.2 x 3.5 inches) large rectangles.
5. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 200°C (400°F). Take the Printen out of the oven and let them cool down.
If the cut-off leftovers are too crumbly to roll them, I usually add a small amount of honey to the dough. Honey Printen are another favorite German Christmas Market treat so it is the perfect way to use the entire dough.
If you want to, you can cover some of them in dark chocolate.
Fruchtspieße (Fruit Skewers)
Chocolate-covered fruit skewers are one of the most popular German Christmas market treats and likely the easiest delicacy on this list. They are incredibly popular and there is a large variety of them. Strawberries and grapes tend to be the most popular Fruit Skewers at German Christmas Markets, but melon and bananas are strong contenders as well.
Ingredients
White and/or Dark Chocolate
Strawberries or other Fruits
How to make Fruit Skewers:
1. Tread the fruits on wooden skewers.
2. Dunk the fruit skewers in chocolate or pour the chocolate over them.
3. Place in the refrigerator to let the chocolate harden.
Paradiesapfel (Paradise Apple)
Ingredients per apple
- 1 sour apple
- 90 g sugar
- 1 Tsp. cold water
- red food coloring
- 1 squeeze of lemon juice
- wooden stick or metal straw
1. Clean the apple and remove the stem. Push a wooden stick or a metal straw into the apple where the stem used to be.
2. Mix and melt the sugar, water, lemon juice, and food coloring in a pot. Stir continuously until it starts to caramelize.
3. Dunk the apple in the sugary mix while spinning it around. You might have to do so several times until you can no longer see the color of the apple itself.
4. Place the apple on a sugar-covered plate and let it harden.
Kokosmakronen
Obviously, there are many different cookies and similar things that can be found at Christmas Market. And it would admittedly be impossible to include all of them in one single post. Therefore I decided to include German coconut macaroons as a representative of all the cookies. This sweet Christmas Market treat can be found at most Christmas Markets and I happen to love it, so including my grandma’s recipe seemed like the best choice.
Ingredients
- 4 egg whites
- 200 g sugar
- 0.5 tsp. vanilla sugar
- 1 kp. cinnamon
- 2 drops bitter almond oil
- 200 g coconut flakes
1. Beat the egg white until stiff.
2. Slowly add the sugar, vanilla sugar, cinnamon, and bitter almond oil.
3. Gently fold in the coconut flakes. Do not use a kitchen machine for this part or your German coconut macaroons will be as hard as a stone.
4. Place them in wafer paper or directly on baking paper before baking them for 35 minutes at 120°C (250°F).
Christstollen (Christmas Stollen)
Ingredients
- 150 g raisins
- 0.5 tsp. lemon peel
- 100 g candied orange peel
- 50 g ground almonds
- 62 ml rum
- 425 g flour
- 21 g yeast
- 75 ml milk
- 100 g butter
- 1 egg
- 50 g sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla sugar
- 1 kp. salt
- 0.5 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 kp. cardamom
- 1 kp. nutmeg
1. Mix the raisins, lemon peel, candied orange peel, ground almonds, and rum. Let it rest for 1 hour.
2. Add flour to a bowl and create a pit in the middle before adding yeast to the pit. Add 2 Tsp. of warm milk and mix it with the yeast in the pit. Cover the pit with flour before covering the entire bowl with a towel and letting it rest for 30 minutes.
3. Add butter, sugar, vanilla sugar, the egg, and the spices to the flour bowl. Mix everything before kneading it for 10 minutes. Slowly add the rest of the milk during these ten minutes.
4. Combine the dough and the rum mix before letting it rest for 30 minutes.
5. Knead the dough again and divide it into two lumps. Form both of them into longish loaves.
6. Flatten one half lengthwise with a dough role to create the typical form of this popular Christmas Market food. Fold the higher half over the flattened one. Let the loaves rest for 30 minutes.
7. Place the loaves on tinfoil and baking paper. Bake at 200°C (390°F) for 40 minutes. Turn down the heat to 180°C (350°F) after 25 minutes and cover the loaves with the tinfoil.
8. Take the loaves out of the oven and cover them with molten butter. Repeat after 5 minutes and add the powdered sugar on top.
Lebkuchen (Nuremberg Gingerbread)
Nuremberg gingerbread, called Lebkuchen, might have gingerbread in the name, but it does not taste like the gingerbread many of you know and love. I personally would say that this Christmas market food tastes even better!
It was invented in Germany in the 13th century and there are different ways to make it. Some recipes are closer to the Lebkuchen‘s roots of honey bread, while others are more modern. This is the recipe I like the most and it tastes like ‘Elisenlebkuchen‘ which happen to be my personal favorite.
Ingredients
- 100 g ground hazelnut
- 100 g ground almonds
- 50 g ground walnuts
- 180 g sugar
- 1 Tsp. vanilla sugar
- 50 g candied lemon peel
- 50 g candied orange peel
- 50 g flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- 1 pinch cardamom
- 1 pinch clove powder
- 1 egg yolk
- 5 egg whites
- wafer paper
1. Mix all ingredients but the egg whites.
2. Beat the egg white until they are stiff before folding them in the Lebkuchen dough.
3. Place one spoonful of the dough on a round wafer paper or directly on baking paper.
4. Place the Christmas Market treat on a griddle with baking paper. Ensure that there is at least 2 cm of space between all of them.
5. Bake at 170°C ( 340°F) for 17 minutes.
6. Let the Lebkuchen cool down while preparing the coating.
Coating Options
Dark Chocolate: Melt some chocolate and spread it on the Lebkuchen.
Honey Orange Glace: 5 Tsp. honey, 2 Tsp. butter, 3 Tsp. orange juice, powdered sugar
- Melt the butter and honey on the stove. Stir until the mix is fully liquid.
- Add the orange juice to the mix.
- Spread the glaze on the Lebkuchen.
Freebie Ebook: German Christmas Market Food – Sweet Treats
Savory Christmas Market Food
Maronen (Roasted Chestnuts
Ingredients
Chestnuts
1. Wash the chestnuts.
2. Cut an X into the peel to ensure that they do not burst while they bake. Hereby the X-cut should be around 1.5 cm (0.4 in) long.
3. Bake the chestnuts at 175°C (350°F) for 20 minutes or longer if the peel has yet to open at the cut. Place an ovenproof bowl with water in the oven to ensure that the chestnuts do not desiccate.
Crèpe
Ingredients for 12 Crèpes
- 500 g flour
- 3 eggs
- 750 ml milk or water (depending on topping; water for savory crèpes and milk for sweet crèpes)
- a pinch of salt
- Mix all ingredients before letting the dough rest for one hour.
- Prepare the crèpes in a pan or with a crèpe maker.
Bubble Waffles
Bubble waffles are sweeter than normal waffles and due to their form, the waffles are fluffier. You need a bubble waffle iron to make them, but it is also possible to use the recipe to make conventional sweeter waffles. The waffles are a newer Christmas market food, but you should definitely try them.
Ingredients
- 150 g butter
- 6 eggs
- 150 g sugar
- 450 g flour
- 100 g starch
- 1 Tsp. baking powder
- 3 Tsp. vanilla sugar
- 450 ml milk
- Melt the butter.
- Mix the eggs and sugars until the mix is fluffy.
- Add all other ingredients including the butter to the egg-sugars mix.
- Let the bubble waffle dough rest for 10 minutes.
Topping: You can use whatever topping you want for your bubble waffles. I personally love adding vanilla ice cream, chocolate spread, and coconut flakes as a topping.
Waffles
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 250 g butter (soft)
- 200 g sugar
- 1 Tsp. vanilla sugar
- 500 g flour
- 500 ml sparkling water
- 1 Tsp. baking powder
- Mix the eggs, the butter, and the two sugars.
- Add flour, sparkling water, and baking powder to the mix while stirring.
- Pour the mix into a waffle maker.
Dampfnudeln (Yeast Dumplings)
A lot of recipes for this Christmas Market treat require a steam cooker and these days I tend to use one whenever I make Dampfnudeln. However, I am aware of the fact that not everyone has one or that you might not be able to use yours if you are currently away from home. Therefore I decided to select the recipe I use, whenever I cannot use my steam cooker.
Ingredients
- 500 g flour
- 250 ml milk
- 0.5 tsp. vanilla sugar
- 30 g yeast
- 40 g butter
- 80 g sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 pinch salt
- 125 ml cream
- 1 Tsp. sugar
1. Dissolve the sugar and salt in warm milk before adding a small amount of flour and yeast.
2. Add the remaining flour, vanilla sugar, an egg, and butter. Knead the dough until it no longer sticks to your bowl.
3. Cover the bowl with a towel and let it rest for 45 minutes.
4. Form 12 round yeast dumplings and dust them with flour so they no longer stick to each other. Let them rest for 15 minutes.
5. Grease a pan and add 1 Tsp. of sugar and the cream. Place the yeast dumplings in the pan.
6. Place a lid on the pan and cook them at a high temperature for 4 minutes. Lower the temperature to a moderate one after that and let the yeast dumplings cook until the liquid is gone. This should take between 10 and 15 minutes.
7. Serve this great German Christmas Market food with vanilla pudding. Hereby you can make the pudding however you usually cook it and just add approximately 50 ml of milk or cream more than you usually would.
Tip: If you cannot eat all of them and have some leftovers, you can put them in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes to turn them into sweet bread buns.
Flammkuchen (Tarte Flambée)
Ingredients
Dough
- 220 g flour
- 2 Tsp. olive oil
- 120 ml water
- 1 pinch salt
Topping
- 200 g red onion
- 200 g crème fraîche
- 30 ml cream
- 3 pinches salt
- 2 pinches pepper
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- 100 g ham
- 4 Tsp. chives
1. Mix all dough ingredients before letting the dough rest in a cold environment for 30 minutes.
2. Roll out the dough as thin as possible.
Topping: There are different toppings and all of them can be found at German Christmas markets. The ingredients listed above are for the traditional topping.
3. Cut the red onion and mix all ingredients except for the chives. Spread it on the dough.
4. If you want to, you can add additional things to the topping of this popular Christmas Market food. Cheese, champignons, corn, or smoked salmon are popular additions.
5. Preheat the oven. Bake at 250°C (480°F) for 20 minutes.
6. Spread the minced chives on the Tarte flambee and enjoy this delicious treat.
Reibekuchen (Potato Fritter)
Ingredients
- 350 g potatoes (boil-proof)
- 2 small onions
- 2 carrots
- 1 egg
- 5 tsp. flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- pepper
1. Peel the potatoes before grating the onions, carrots, and peeled potatoes.
2. Add everything to a bowl and mix until it is a humongous mass.
3. Pour into a pan with heated oil. Ensure that the oil is not too hot.
4. Flip the potato fritter as it fries.
Christmas Market Drinks
These festive drinks are the best drinks if you want to feel like you are visiting one of the amazing Christmas Markets in Europe. So make one or more of them, and enjoy your hot drink while eating your favorite German Christmas Market food.
Weißer Glühwein (White Mulled Wine)
Ingredients
- 250 ml white wine (dry)
- 50 ml apple juice
- 1 clove
- 1 star anis
- 2 ts sugar
- 1/2 orange
1. Cut the orange into slices
2. Add everything to a pot and heat it up on the stove for at least ten minutes.
Roter Glühwein (Red Mulled Wine)
Ingredients
- 750 ml red wine (dry)
- 1 orange
- 1 cinnamon quill
- 6 cloves
- 5 Tsp honey or sugar
- 0.5 tsp cardamon
- (1 vanilla pod)
1. Cut the orange and add everything to a pot.
2. Heat it up on the stove, but ensure that it does not cook. Otherwise, the alcohol will evaporate and the mulled wine will lose its taste.
3. Serve it while it is hot and enjoy the most popular Christmas Market drink!
Non-alcoholic Punch
Most Christmas Market drinks contain at least a small amount of alcohol, but obviously, they are not always an option. Therefore I just had to include non-alcoholic punch that you can drink while you work or give to the kids while you enjoy real mulled wine. It is the perfect drink to drink while enjoying the Christmas Market food on this list!
Ingredients for 1 cup
- 125 ml apple juice
- 125 ml grape juice (white or red)
- 10 ml lemon juice
- 20 ml orange juice
- 1 clove
- 1 cinnamon quill
- 2 kp. nutmeg
Mix everything and heat it up on the stove. Let it cook for 10 minutes so the flavors merge.
I happen to prefer white punch, but you can also turn it into a red punch by using red grape juice. Both of them taste great, so it is entirely up to you.
Eierlikör (Egg Liqueur)
Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 150 g sugar
- 1 Tsp. vanilla sugar
- 175 ml cream
- 250 ml double-distilled wheat schnapps
- potentially some milk
1. Add everything to a pot and cook while stirring for 10 minutes.
2. Add a small amount of milk if the liquid is too stiff.
3. Pour the egg liqueur into preheated glass bottles.
Marzipanlikör / Engelchenlikör (Marzipan Liqueur)
There are many liqueurs that are available in different cities, but marzipan liqueur is a classic. It combines that sweet flavor of marzipan with a creamy taste and once you have tried it, you will know why it is popular. Most people drink it cold, but you can also drink it while it is hot. That is how I prefer this fantastic Christmas Market treat.
Ingredients
- 100 g white chocolate
- 80 g sugar
- marzipan paste
- 300 ml cream
- 200 ml amaretto
1. Melt the chocolate on the stove and add the sugar and 150 ml of the cream to the pot.
2. Add the amaretto and slowly add a small amount of marzipan paste. Keep stirring the liquid until the marzipan melts while adding the rest of the cream.
Grog
There are different variations of Grog, but this is the one you will find at German Christmas markets. Originating from England, Grog became popular in Northern Germany in the early 19th century. It has since become a popular winter drink, so you can get it at Christmas markets everywhere in Germany.
Ingredients
- 200 ml water
- 4 cl rum
- 3 tsp. brown sugar
- Bring the water to a boil.
- Add sugar and rum to a heat resistant glass.
- Add the heated water to the glass and stir the content until the sugar has dissolved.
Feuerzangenbowle
Making Feuerzangenbowle involves burning rum, so please be careful while making it. It is quite easy to make it, but if you play with fire caution is always advised. Please do not make it if you are already intoxicated or in a situation you would not drive a car in. After all, I want you to enjoy a German classic without setting anything but the sugar on fire. Be careful and enjoy your Feuerzangenbowle!
Ingredients
- 1 l red wine (dry)
- 200 ml rum (at least 50%)
- 1 cone sugar ‘Zuckerhut‘ (250 g of compressed sugar)
- 2 cloves
- 1 cinnamon quill
- juice of 1 orange
- juice of 1 lemon
- fire thong ‘Feuerzange‘ (thin metal plate with holes in it)
- fire-proof bowl or pot
9. Serve it while it is hot.
1. Heat up the wine with the cloves, the cinnamon quill, lemon juice, and orange juice. Ensure that it does not cook are the alcohol evaporates.
2. Place the cone sugar (Zuckerhut) on the fire thong above the wine mix.
3. Pour some of the rum over the sugar.
4. Check if there is nothing nearby that could catch fire and there is nothing above the put for at least 1 m. You are literally playing with fire to make this drink and I do not want you to set anything but the sugar on fire.
5. Carefully light up the rum-soaked sugar with a stick lighter or along matchstick. The flame can be high for a second and you do not want your fingers nearby if that happens.
6. Keep pouring rum onto the sugar with a spoon. Never pour it directly from the bottle as doing so is incredibly dangerous.
7. Continue to do so until the sugar is nearly or entirely gone.
8. Stir the Feuerzangenbowle to dissolve the sugar that might remain at the bottom of the bowl.
Hot Chocolate Variations
There is a very great likelihood that you already know how to make a great hot chocolate, so a recipe is not necessary.
However, we like to spike our hot chocolate at Christmas markets to make it more Christmassy.
So just add some amaretto, baileys, or rum and cream to the tasty mix of chocolate and milk, and you have a Christmas Market hot chocolate. In some parts of Germany and Austria, the variation with amaretto is known as Italian Chocolate.
Which German Christmas Market food will you make first?
If you plan weekend getaways in Europe in December, you can eat as much Christmas Market food as you want. But as that is not always an option, these traditional German recipes are the way to create a small piece of Europe wherever you are.
I believe that these sweet treats and drinks are the key to getting into the holiday spirit if you cannot visit Christmas Markets like the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarket or all the other big ones in Europe. And knowing that you made them yourself makes the entire thing even better aside from the fact that some of these treats can be a great last-minute Christmas gift.
More about Germany
If you dream of visiting Germany and the German Christmas Markets, then these Germany Travel Guides might be useful:
Which German Christmas Market food will you make first?
Let me know in the comments down below!
Planning to Make Some German Christmas Market Food soon?
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WOW! This is so well done and comprehensive. And you’ve got me drooling! I remember hearing about the Nuremberg gingerbread when we were there but I don’t think we tasted any. You might inspire some Christmas baking!