• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Cook Like Czechs
  • Recipes
  • Czech Republic
  • About
  • Newsletter
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Czech Republic
  • About
  • Newsletter
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Czech Christmas Cookies

    Masaryk's Christmas Cookies (Czech Masarykovo Cukroví)

    Published: Dec 17, 2020 · Modified: Dec 10, 2022 by Petra Kupská

    Jump to Recipe
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Email
    • 120shares

    This traditional Czech recipe dates back to the 1920s when Czechoslovakia was established, and Tomas Masaryk became our country's first president. This particular Christmas cookie was his personal favorite, and it was named after him: Masaryk's cookies.

    Czech Christmas Masaryk cookies served on a festive tray.
    Table of Contents hide
    ➜ What is Masaryk's cookie
    ➜ Ingredients you need
    ➜ Instructions with photos
    ➜ Storage
    ➜ Useful tips
    ➜ Who was Thomas Garrigue Masaryk?
    Masarykovo Cukrovi

    ➜ What is Masaryk's cookie

    I made Masaryk's cookies for the first time about five years ago and was pleasantly surprised by the ease of the recipe and the delicious flavor.

    No cookie cutters or special molds are needed. You roll the dough into elongated cylinders, let it stiffen in the fridge, and then cut it into rounds, like a sausage.

    After baking, just coat the cookies in powdered sugar and let them rest for about a week to soften.

    The Czech name for these cookies is: "Masarykovo cukroví" or "Masarykovy sušenky", which means Masaryk Christmas cookies and Masaryk bisquits.

    MY TIP: Try pracny, another delicious Czech Christmas cookie!

    ➜ Ingredients you need

    Ingredients for Czech Christmas Masaryk cookies, inclusive captions.

    To make Czech Masaryk Christmas cookies, you will need:

    • All-purpose flour; or plain flour if you are based in the UK
    • Unsalted butter; Czechs use butter with a fat percentage of 82%. The butter should be cold, taken out of the fridge about half an hour beforehand.
    • Powdered sugar; to sweeten the cookie dough plus to coat baked cookies in
    • Vanilla paste; or vanilla essence. If you can get a sachet of vanilla sugar at your grocery store, use that. Vanilla sugar is fine granulated sugar mixed with real vanilla flavoring. A popular brand is Dr. Oetker, whose products can be found, for example, on Amazon.com
    • Whole raw hazelnuts; unpeeled, with the skin on. Hazelnuts play an important role in this recipe. They are placed whole in the dough and become crunchy when bitten into the baked cookies.
    • Egg yolk; helps keep the dough together

    ✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

    ➜ Instructions with photos

    STEP 1: First of all, put the whole hazelnuts in a mug and pour lukewarm water over them. Let them stand for about an hour. The nuts will soften slightly in the water.

    Whole Hazelnuts soaking in a pot of water.

    STEP 2: In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, sugar, vanilla paste, egg yolk, and butter, chopped into smaller pieces.

    Drain the nuts and dry them gently with a kitchen towel. Add them to the bowl with the other ingredients.

    Ingredients for Masaryk cookies in a white bowl.

    STEP 3: Make the cookie dough. First, mix the wet ingredients, i.e. egg yolk and vanilla paste, with the flour using a fork. Then, using your fingers, work the butter into the other ingredients until lumps form.

    Dump the mass onto a work surface and use your hands to finish it into a smooth, slightly sticky dough. Be patient, and don't work hastily. The dough may seem too powdery at first, but as you go on, the butter will soften, and everything will come together beautifully.

    Don't knead the dough too long! Once you get a smooth dough, stop working it.

    STEP 4: Divide the dough in half and roll it into elongated cylinders nearly two inches (5 cm) in diameter. Cover them in plastic wrap and let them firm up in the fridge for about an hour.

    Two cylinders of cookie dough on a plastic bag.

    STEP 5: Using a sharp knife, cut the cooled cylinders of dough into rounds about ¼ inch (0.6 cm) thick.

    Cutting strands of cookie dough for Czech Masarykovo cukrovi.

    STEP 6: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. I always grease the baking sheet a little to ensure the paper sticks well. Place the cookies on the lined baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 340 °F (170 °C) for 13 minutes.

    Cookies with hazelnuts laid on a baking tray.
    Baked Masaryk cookies on a tray.

    STEP 7: Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes. While still warm, roll them in powdered sugar, scented with the vanilla pod (optional).

    Coating Masaryk cookies in a bowl of powdered sugar.

    ➜ Storage

    Immediately after baking, Masaryk's cookies are fragile and crispy; then they firm up the next day. If you leave the cookies to rest for about a week to ten days, they will soften perfectly.

    For storage, prepare a paper box lined with paper napkins. Place the cookies in the box. Cover with a lid and store in a cool, dry place.

    Czech Christmas Masaryk cookies served on a festive tray.

    ➜ Useful tips

    • Although the cookies will soften after a week or two, the hazelnuts inside will remain crunchy.
    • Do not use plastic or metal boxes for storage. The cookies would not get the moisture they need to soften.
    • Masaryk's cookies freeze without any problems. Proceed by placing the sweets in an airtight container and storing them in the freezer, where they will keep for at least half a year.

    ➜ Who was Thomas Garrigue Masaryk?

    Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (also known as TGM, or President Liberator by his contemporaries) was a Czech politician who managed to convince the Entente in WWI to split up Austria-Hungary and create separate countries instead.

    Tomáš Masaryk became the President of the First Czechoslovak Republic, the only persisting interwar democratic state in Central Europe, and held the office for most of its existence.

    He resigned in 1935, shortly before WWII, due to his old age.

    Today, he is remembered with love as one of the most important Czechs in history and the first president of the Czechoslovak Republic.

    More Czech Christmas cookies:

    • Linecke cukrovi – Czech Linzer cookies
    • Vanilla crescents – vanilkove rohlicky
    • Beehive cookies – vosi hnizda

    Or browse the category with all Czech Christmas cookies

    Tried this recipe?

    Leave a review down in the comments! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

    Follow me on Facebook and Pinterest. Subscribe to my newsletter. Send me any question about Czech cuisine to my e-mail. I love hearing your feedback!

    Czech Christmas Masaryk cookies served on a festive tray.

    Masarykovo Cukrovi

    An authentic recipe for Czech Christmas cookies with whole hazelnuts.
    Print Pin
    Prep Time: 30 minutes
    Cook Time: 13 minutes
    Total Time: 43 minutes
    Servings: 40 pieces
    Calories: 78kcal
    Author: Petra Kupská
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Course: cookies
    Cuisine: Czech
    Keyword: Czech Christmas

    Ingredients

    • 1 and ⅓ cups all-purpose flour (170 g)
    • ⅓ cup powdered sugar (40 g)
    • 1 stick unsalted butter (112 g) cold
    • ¾ cup hazelnuts (100 g) raw with skins on
    • 1 egg yolk
    • ½ teaspoon vanilla paste
    • ½ cup powdered sugar to coat cookies

    Instructions

    • First of all, put the whole hazelnuts in a mug and pour lukewarm water over them. Let them stand for about an hour. The nuts will soften slightly in the water.
    • In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, sugar, vanilla paste, egg yolk, and butter, chopped into smaller pieces.
    • Drain the nuts and dry them gently with a kitchen towel. Add them to the bowl with the other ingredients.
    • Make the cookie dough. First, mix the wet ingredients, i.e. egg yolk and vanilla paste, with the flour using a fork. Then, using your fingers, work the butter into the other ingredients until lumps form.
    • Dump the mass onto a work surface and use your hands to finish it into a smooth, slightly sticky dough. Be patient, and don't work hastily. The dough may seem too powdery at first, but as you go on, the butter will soften, and everything will come together beautifully.
    • Note: Don't knead the dough too long! Once you get a smooth dough, stop working it.
    •  Divide the dough in half and roll it into elongated cylinders nearly two inches (5 cm) in diameter. Cover them in plastic wrap and let them firm up in the fridge for about an hour.
    • Using a sharp knife, cut the cooled cylinders of dough into rounds about ¼ inch (0.6 cm) thick.
    • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. I always grease the baking sheet a little to ensure the paper sticks well. Place the cookies on the lined baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 340 °F (170 °C) for 13 minutes.
    • Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes. While still warm, roll them in powdered sugar, scented with the vanilla pod (optional).

    Notes

    • Makes about 40 cookies, depending on their size.
    • Immediately after baking, Masaryk's cookies are fragile and crispy; then they firm up the next day. If you leave the cookies to rest for about a week to ten days, they will soften perfectly.
    • STORAGE: Prepare a paper box lined with paper napkins. Place the cookies in the box. Cover with a lid and store in a cool, dry place.
    • Although the cookies will soften after a week or two, the hazelnuts inside will remain crunchy.

    DISCLAIMER: Because I come from Central Europe, my recipes are based on metric units such as grams or milliliters. Check out how I convert metric units to the U.S. system:

    Conversion chart

    Nutritional Estimate pro portion

    Calories: 78kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 28mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 103IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 0.4mg
    Do you like the recipe?I would be happy for your feedback! Please, rate the recipe and share your opinion or questions in comments bellow. Thank you very much.
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Email
    • 120shares

    More Czech Christmas Cookies (Cukroví)

    • Heavy Cream Cookies (Czech Slehackove cukrovi)
    • Crispy Hollow Cookies (Czech Krehulky)
    • No-bake Mushroom Cookies
    • Spiced Wine (Czech Svařák)

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Perrin

      January 02, 2022 at 11:17 am

      You are not specific about what kind of hazelnut to use…roasted, salted, fried or raw?

      Reply
      • Petra Kupská

        January 03, 2022 at 10:54 am

        I apologize for the inaccuracy in the recipe. These are raw hazelnuts, which should be soaked in water beforehand to soften them a bit.

        Reply
        • Gloria

          December 06, 2022 at 4:01 pm

          thank you , I have a friend I will be baking these for, she misses home 🤗

          Reply
          • Petra Kupská

            December 11, 2022 at 4:41 pm

            Thank you, Gloria! I believe you and your friend will love these cookies 🙂

            Reply

    Leave a star rating and review or ask a question! Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Hi there, I’m Petra, a self-taught home cook and a Czech mom of two teen boys with more than 20 years of cooking experience. I am here to share traditional recipes from the Czech Republic, a small country in the very heart of Europe.

    More about me →

    Popular

    • Pork Liver with Gravy (Onion and Bacon Included)
    • Sweet Cabbage Filling
    • How to Quickly Make Dough Rise Inside an Oven
    • Yeast Bundt Cake with Poppy Seed Filling

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    All Things Czech

    • Czech Recipes
    • Czech Republic
    • Conversions U.S. to metric

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for new recipes, stories and more Czech stuff

    Useful Links

    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

    Copyright © 2022 CookLikeCzechs.com