"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (2024)

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This year, I have a unique holiday cookie recipe for you. Delicious “Railroad” cookies. Buttery chocolate shortbread, delicate marzipan cream, and aromatic tart-sweet orange marmalade combined in one cookie. You name it- taste explosion predetermined 😉 And they have a super cool name! It looks like a railroad track, hence the name Eisenbahner, which means railroad man in German.

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"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (1)

What are Eisenbahner – “Railroad” Christmas cookies

Every year at Christmas I take it upon myself to try a new Christmas cookie recipe, simply to be able to surprise my loved ones with something new in the Christmas cookie jar.

This year, I have chosen a traditional Christmas cookie recipe from my grandmother and made it my own “Homemade holiday cookies with a twist” 😉. Eisenbahner in Englisch “Railroad” Cookies. The recipe originates in Austria and Germany, but unfortunately, I couldn’t find any more facts about the recipe.

Railroad cookies consist of a crispy shortbread base, left and right; an incredibly delicious almond paste is sprayed in a strip that looks like train tracks. After baking, the center is still filled with a delicious jam, and the cookies are cut.
Now, the cookies sound super elaborate, but they are not. The cookies are baked in long “railroad” rails and cut into individual cookies. So you get a lot of cookies made quickly and with little effort. Great, right?!?

"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (2)

“Railroad” Christmas cookies but my way.

Originally, railroaders were made with a light shortbread base and a fruity berry jam smeared on top. But…. I prefer something more chocolatey and love the combination of chocolate and orange. That’s why I have a chocolate shortcrust pastry and take an aromatic sweet-tart orange marmalade as a jam. Simply incredibly ingenious in taste 🙂

"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (3)

Some thoughts and tips on this vintage Christmas cookie recipe

Firstly, please use cold butter for the shortbread.
I grease the work surface and the dough roller well to make it easier to move the dough strips.
The jam must be warmed in the microwave and then stirred with a spoon until smooth.
I pipe the almond mixture on immediately after the 1st baking of the dough strips.
If you have shortbread left over just cut out a few cookies 😉
Instead of orange marmalade I love to use raspberry or currant jam both harmonizes with the chocolate shortbread also quite wonderful.
The cookies can be stored in the refrigerator or in a cool place up to 3 weeks.

"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (4)

"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (5)

Hopefully, I could convince you with my enthusiasm and rapture to try my recipe for “Railroad” Christmas cookies this year. It’s a unique holiday cookie flavor combination.

Lastly if you make these Railroad Christmas treats, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag us onInstagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite .

Sweet hugs

Nina

Are you looking for more delicious and easy cookie recipes? Here are some more recipes to create the best holiday cookies plate ever.

Fairy Kisses – a unique Christmas Cookie recipe
Vanilla Crescents
Speculoos Gingerbread Cookies
Boozy Chocolate Cake Moon Cookies
Baileys Hazelnut Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
Nutty Triangles

"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (10)

"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (11)

Railroad Christmas Cookies – a folksy Austrian Christmas Cookie Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by NinaCourse: christmas cookies, DessertCuisine: austrian

Servings

Prep time

minutes

Ingredients

Chocolate short pastry dough
240 g 240 flour all purpose
160 g 160 butter unsalted, cut into small cubes
80 g 80 sugar
2 tbsp 2 cocoa powder unsweetened ,for example bensdorp
1 pinch 1 salt
1/2 tsp 1/2 baking powder
1 1 egg yolk
1 tbsp 1 vanilla sugar
1 tbsp 1 water optional, if you feel that the dough is dry and crumbly add 1 or 2 tbsp to the dough .
Almond paste tracks filling
200 g 200 almond paste also known as marzipan, cooled in the fridge for 1 hour
15 g 15 butter room temperature
1 1 egg white
20 g 20 powdered sugar
1 tbsp 1 ground almonds
400 g 400 orange jam fine cut, for the filling

Directions

Chocolate short pastry dough
In a bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on mix together the flour and butter until everything looks like ground nuts .
Add all the other ingredients and mix until the dough comes together.
If the dough is dry and crumbly add 1 tbsp and mix again . Add another if the dough still feels crumbly and won't come together.
Form the dough into a ball and wrap it with cling fling and put it for 10 minutes into the fridge.
Method 1
After the resting time form a log.
Dust your surface lightly with flour that the dough will not stick to the surface when rolled out. Dust your rolling pin as well.
Now roll the lock into a rectangle 36cm x 35cm
Cut 4 stripes lengths wise .
Transfer the dough stripes with the help of a spatula or dough card carefully onto a backing tray prepared with baking paper.
If the dough stripes tear don't worry just stick them together. Use a dough card to bring the stripes back into a rectangular form if necessary.
You might need to use 2 baking trays to bake all 4 stripes.
Bake the chocolate short pastry stripes for 10 minutes at 175C fan (350F)
Method 2
Take the chocolate dough out of the fridge and cut into 4 equal parts .
Roll every part into a log about 30 cm long.
Lightly dust a parchment paper with flour put 2-3 logs onto the parchment paper. Leave some space between the logs and roll them into rectangular stripes which are 35 cm long and 8cm wide.
Repeat that process with the other logs.
Bake the stripes for 10 minutes at 175C Fan (350F)
Almond paste filling
First crate the almond paste with a rough grater.
Then mix in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attached the egg white with the sugar until stiff and glossy .
Now whisk in another bowl the grated almond paste, ground almonds and the butter together.
Add half of the stiff egg white mixture and fold it into the almond butter batter .
Add the rest of the egg white mixture and fold it in again.
Fill the batter into a piping bag with a 1cm (0,25 inch) open star piping tip (Number 19 or 20)
When the chocolate cookie dough stripes are baked for 10 minutes let them slightly cool and then start piping the tracks.
Pipe two tracks on each side of every chocolate cookie stripe and bake again for 10 more minutes.
Jam filling
When the baking time is almost over pour the orange jam into a bowl and reheat it for 1-2 minutes in your microwave. The orange jam should be at body temperature . Stir the jam with a spoon until smooth.
Take the baking trays out of the oven and fill the middle of every strip with the orange jam.
Let the train track stripes sit for about 10 minutes and then cut them into train track cookie slices. Every cookie should be about 1,5cm large (thats about 0,6 inch).
Transfer the cookies onto a cooling rack and let them cool completely .
When the cookies are cooled you can store them into airtight cookie boxes but make sure to put a piece of baking parchment between the cookies before you add the cookies on top of each other.
Store the cookies in your fridge. They will stay good and delicious for up to 3 weeks.
Have a lovely christmas time with your family and I hope you love those cookies as much as we do.

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 57kcal
Carbohydrates: 8g
Protein: 1g
Fat: 3g
Saturated Fat: 1g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g
Monounsaturated Fat: 1g
Trans Fat: 0.1g
Cholesterol: 7mg
Sodium: 18mg
Potassium: 19mg
Fiber: 0.3g
Sugar: 5g
Vitamin A: 61IU
Vitamin C: 0.2mg
Calcium: 9mg
Iron: 0.2mg

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Nina

Nina is a mom of 2, a passionate photographer and kitchen scientist. She is a very creative and chaotic person, thats why she needs to organize her life very much to not get lost on her way 😉.

"Eisenbahner " Railroad Cookies - a Folksy unique Christmas cookie recipe from Austria with almond paste and jam filling (2024)

FAQs

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History. Modern Christmas cookies can trace their history to recipes from Medieval Europe biscuits, when many modern ingredients such as cinnamon, ginger, black pepper, almonds and dried fruit were introduced into the west.

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In the Southern colonies, every housewife knew how to bake tea cakes that had no extra flavoring except butter and sometimes a couple drops of rose water. The first American cookies that showed up in cook books had creative names like Jumbles, Plunkets and Cry Babies which gave no clue to what was inside the cookie.

What are marzipan cookies made of? ›

Tender and delicate Marzipan Sugar Cookies are one of our family's favorite Christmas treats. Made with almond flour and powdered sugar then topped with a slice of marzipan then dusted with confectioners sugar. If you're a marzipan lover, then I have the perfect cookie for you.

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Oreo is the best-selling cookie in the world. It is now sold in over 100 countries. Oreo was first produced in 1912 by the National Biscuit Company, now known as Na-Bis-Co.

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On the naughty list of cookies, Americans gave the lowest win records to anise cookies, which only won 29% of its matchups.

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Pizzelles are the oldest known cookie and originated in the mid-section of Italy. They were made many years ago for the “Festival of the Snakes” also known as the “Feast Day of San Domenico” in the village of Colcullo in the Italian region of Abruzzo.

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Chocolate chip cookies hold a wider margin over their nearest rivals, with second-placed sugar cookies fourteen points behind at 64%. Fudge comes in third on 63%, followed by brownie cookies or brookies (61%), double chocolate cookies (61%), M&M cookies (61%), and shortbread cookies (61%).

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It wasn't until very recently, around 1938, that chocolate chip cookies were first invented. Unlike a lot of other things, the chocolate chip cookie was not invented by accident. During the 1930s, a chef named Ruth Graves Wakefield decided to give something different to her customers.

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Chocolate chip cookies are claimed to have originated in the United States in 1938, when Ruth Graves Wakefield chopped up a Nestlé semi-sweet chocolate bar and added the chopped chocolate to a cookie recipe; however, historical recipes for grated or chopped chocolate cookies exist prior to 1938 by various other authors ...

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Cookies appear to have their origins in 7th century AD Persia, shortly after the use of sugar became relatively common in the region. They spread to Europe through the Muslim conquest of Spain.

Is marzipan just almond paste? ›

Almond paste has twice the amount of almonds in it compared to marzipan, making it coarser in texture and less sweet than its counterpart. Their consistency also differs as marzipan is smooth and pliable, almost clay-like, while almond paste is somewhat gritty and spreadable, almost like a cookie dough.

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What's the difference between marzipan and almond icing? ›

Marzipan is smooth, sweet, and often dyed and molded into shapes. It's also used to cover sweets much like fondant and is sometimes eaten as is. Almond paste, however, is coarser, less sweet, and used as an ingredient or filling for baked goods.

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What is America's favorite holiday cookie? ›

Among those who can make a single choice, frosted sugar cookies lead the list (32%), with gingerbread (12%) and chocolate chip (11%) rounding out the top three. Snickerdoodles (6%) come in fourth place, followed by butter (4%), peanut butter (4%), and chocolate (4%) tying for fifth.

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Italian Christmas Cookies grow as top cookie

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2. Holiday Candy Cookie Bites – Number two on the list of Santa's favorite cookies is Holiday Candy Cookie Bites, which is a holiday version of the year-round favorite, Chocolate Chip Cookies. Instead of traditional chocolate chips, these cookies are studded with red and green candies and white baking chips.

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Chocolate Chip cookies

Santa himself lists these as his favorites, and he prefers them soft and gooey with lots of chocolate chips. If you decide to leave these out for him, make sure there's a glass of cold milk nearby!

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