With this easy Lebkuchenherzen recipe you can create these iconic gingerbread heart cookies yourself. No Oktoberfest, Kirmes or Christmas market without bringing back a German Gingerbread Heart. Delicious flavours of honey, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg make this traditional Lebkuchen cake a special treat. Decorated with sugar icing and inscribed with a fun or meaningful phrase, these heart cookies are the perfect gift.
I am the first to admit that I struggled with decorating the hearts. I am not artistically inclined, but I wanted to share this traditional German recipe with you. As others may find decorating a lot easier than me, and the cake itself is delicious. I can vouch for that.
What Are German Gingerbread Hearts?
Gingerbread hearts are traditional German gingerbread biscuit-like cakes decorated with icing. They are typically flat, plate-sized heart-shaped cookies that are decorated with royal icing. They are made of Lebkuchen, which is a cake made from honey and spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and cloves.
You will find these gingerbread hearts typically sold at any larger German fair such as Oktoberfest, Christmas Markets or Kirmes. They are popular souvenirs and are great as gifts.
Lebkuchenherz translates as "gingerbread heart in English." "Lebkuchen" is the German word for Gingerbread. "Herz" means "Heart" in English.
As an English speaker, you would pronounce it "LEB-COOK-EN-HE-TS".
Another name for the Oktoberfest is "Wiesn". This is because the first festival took place in a large meadow, which in Germany is called "Wiese". So in Germany, an Oktoberfest heart is also known as "Wiesn Herz"
Origin of gingerbread heart tradition in Germany
The history of the Lebkuchenherz began in the 1960s. The inventor of gingerbread was a baker from Munich called Gustav Tschernich. He originally came from the Czech Republic and was a merchant as well as an artist at the Oktoberfest. Tschernich was annoyed about the fragility of chocolate hearts that were sold at the time. So he invented the Lebkuchen hearts and decorated them with sugar icing and a nice inscription. These hearts were such a success that from then on he delivered these edible heart ornaments to many Oktoberfest stalls. Soon they were sold at any large fair in Germany.
How to make Gingerbread Hearts?
These Lebkuchen Herzen are easy to make from scratch. My advice is: give yourself enough time for this recipe as you will have to do a lot of waiting. Waiting for the cake batter to cool down, waiting for the dough to rest, and waiting for the icing to set. However, the wait will be worth it! Trust me!
Equipment needed
Heart shape cookie cutter template
The most important tool is the heart shape. You can buy them UK Link or USA Link (affiliate links) or cut out your template and trace them with a knife.
I have added my template here for FREE. Just download it, print it and cut it out. I cut out a template on some cardboard and then wrapped it in clingfilm to stop it from sticking to the dough.
This recipe makes around 8 gingerbread hearts using my template.
In short: Essential equipment (affiliate links)
- heart shaped cookie cutter or free template
- baking parchment
- small saucepan
- piping bag with star tip and fine writing tip
- OR icing syringe
- Bands to attach hang up the cards
- Clingfilm to wrap the hearts in
Lebkuchen Heart Cookie Ingridients:
- 100 g/ 3.5 oz unsalted butter
- 225 g/ 8 oz honey
- 125 g /4.4 oz sugar
- 2 teaspoon gingerbread spice (I would recommend using my homemade Lebkuchen spicemix, or shop bought)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder (affiliate link)
- 15 g/ 0.5 oz cocoa powder
- 500 g/ 17.6 oz flour
- 1 egg (medium size)
Lebkuchenherz Recipe steps
- Place the butter, honey and sugar in a small pot and place it on the stove. Melt the ingridients on a low heat.
- Remove the pot off the heat and leave to rest until it reaches room temperature.
- Now add in the gingerbread spice, baking powder (affiliate link), cocoa powder and egg to the honey mixture . Using a hand or stand mixer, mix the ingridients until combined. Now slowly add in the the flour and knead to a thick dough.
- Cover the dough, or place in an airtight container and leave to rest for at least 5 hours at room temperature.
- Preheat your oven to 170 degrees.
- Using a rolling pin (affiliate link), roll the dough to a approximate thickness of 5 mm. As the dough it very sticky, I would recommend using a non-stick baking mat, or roll out the directly on the baking parchment. You might also find that the dough is sticking to your rolling pin (affiliate link). To prevent this from happening I used cling film on top of the dough. If you find the dough is too dry and starts cracking you can carefully brush a little milk on top.
- Using your cookie cutter or using a self-cut template, cut out the hearts and place them on a tray lined with parchment.
- Using a small round object- I used a lid of a pen 🙂 cut out the two holes for string to be threaded through later.
- Bake in the oven for about 12-15 minutes. Check that they do not turn too dark.
- Leave to cool completley before decorating.
How to decorate the Gingerbread Hearts.
The icing that is used for Lebkuchenherzen is called Eiweißglasur in German. This translates as "egg white glaze". It is the same as royal icing, which is used to decorate sugar cookies in the UK and US.
The success of the icing very much depends on achieving the perfect consistency. It should not be too dense to pipe, but it needs to be firm enough to hold its shape. It is best to start piping on some baking parchment to test the consistency.
Gingerbread Icing Ingridients:
- 500 g /17.6 oz icing sugar/confectioners sugar
- 2 egg whites (from medium eggs)
- 1 pinch of salt
- 2 table spoons lemon juice
- Food colouring of your choice.
Gingerbread Icing Recipe
- Place the egg whites in a clean mixing bowl. (If there are any traces of oil in the bowl, the eggs might not stiffen. If in doubt, wipe the bowl with some vinegar).
- Add a pinch of salt and whisk the eggs until you can see soft peaks forming.
- Add the icing sugar and lemon juice in little potions.
- The icing should stick to the whisk but still be soft enough to be piped.
- Divide the icing into little potions. Add the food colouring as desired. Remember that if the food colouring is liquid, you might need to add a little more icing sugar/confectioners sugar again to gain the right consistency.
Tips to decorating the lebkuchen hearts
- Start with the writing then continue to the outside.
- If you are unsure of the spacing, edge the letters with a skewer lightly on the cake and then trace with the icing.
- If th icing looses shape after you piped it, it is too liquid and you need to add more sugar.
- The icing is too hard and dry - add a little lemon juice to make it more liquid.
- Prepare ornamental decorations - You can make little flowers, hearts or stars by piping them on some baking parchment. Once they are dry you can stick them on with a little icing. This is an easier way than doing it directly on the cakes.
Gingerbread Heart Inscriptions Ideas
Oktoberfest sayings
- Oktoberfest
- Wiesn Gaudi (means Octoberfest Fun)
- O'zapft is! ("O' Zapft is" is Bavarian dialect for "Es ist angezapft" - literal meaning "it has been tapped," really meaning "party time!")
- Fesches Dirndl (Good looking girl in Dirndl)
- Wiesn Prinzessin (Oktoberfest princess)
- Gruß vom Oktoberfest (Greetings from Oktoberfest)
- Lausbubla (Bavarian word for Rascal)
Christmas Market sayings
- Frohe Weihnachten (Merry Christmas)
- Frohes Fest (Happy Holidays)
- Ich schenk Dir mein Herz (I give/gift you my heart)
Romantic Inscriptions
- Ich Liebe Dich (I Love you)
- Traummann (Dream Man)
- Traumfrau (Dream Woman)
- Herzl (diminuative of heart)
- Fesches Madl (good looking girl)
- Honigmaus (Honey mouse - a nick name)
- Für die Liebe meines Lebens (for the love of my life)
- Ich Vermisse Dich (I miss you)
- Schatzi (my treasure (nickname))
Funny Inscriptions
- Ich bin single (I am single)
- Ich hasse Bier (I hate beer)
- Küss mich! (Kiss me)
- Ich will heim (I want to go home)
- Ich bin Superman (I am superman)
- Zu mir oder zu dir (Shall we go to yours or mine?)
Gingerbread Hearts as gifts
These gingerbread hearts are seldom bought for oneself but are mostly given as a gift.
They are perfect for any occasion. As a souvenir, weddings, birthdays, or simply to cheer someone up.
Wrap the lebkuchen heart in some clingfilm. Make two holes for where the string goes through. Now thread through the string and is ready to give away.
More German Heart Shaped Gift Ideas
Storage Instructions
These gingerbread hearts are sometimes too pretty to eat. But how long do these pretty heart-shaped cakes last? Do not worry. A Lebkuchenherz can last for up to two years! If it gets too hard to eat, simply place it in the fridge for a while, and it will soften. Another tip is to place it in an airtight container with some apples, which will soften the cake again.
Did you try this recipe?
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Interested in German Christmas?
- Read my Guide on German Christmas Food.
- Discover all about German Christmas Market Food
- And see all of our Christmas Recipes
More German Christmas Baking Recipes
- Marzipan Cookies
- German Butter Cookies
- Vanillakipferl
- Baiser Cookies (Germen Merengue Cookies)
- Kokusmakronen (German Coconut Macaroons)
- Spitzbuben (German Jam Cookies)
- Stollen (German Christmas Cake)
Recipe
Lebkuchen Herzen (German Gingerbread Hearts)
Equipment
- heart shaped cookie cutter or free template
- small saucepan
- piping bag (affiliate link) with star tip and fine writing tip
- OR icing syringe
- Bands to attach hang up the hearts
- Clingfilm to wrap the hearts in
Ingredients
For the Hearts
- ½ cups (100 g) unsalted butter
- ⅔ cup (225 g) honey (8 oz)
- ⅔ cups (125 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon gingerbread spice homemade Lebkuchen spicemix, or shop bought
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoon (2 tablespoon) cocoa powder unsweetend
- 4 cups (500 g) all-purpose-flour 17.6 oz, UK plain flour, US Pastry flour, Germany Type 405
- 1 egg medium size
Gingerbread Icing
- 4 cups (500 g) powdered sugar
- 2 egg whites (from medium eggs)
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- Foodcolouring of your choice
Instructions
- Place the butter, honey and sugar in a small pot. Melt the ingredients on the stove on low heat while stirring throughout.½ cups unsalted butter , ⅔ cup honey , ⅔ cups granulated sugar
- Remove the pot from the heat and let rest until it reaches room temperature.
- Add the gingerbread spice, baking powder (affiliate link), cocoa powder, and egg to the honey mixture. Using a hand or stand mixer, mix the ingredients until combined. Now, slowly add in the flour and knead to a thick dough.2 teaspoon gingerbread spice , 1 teaspoon baking powder (affiliate link) , 2 tablespoon cocoa powder , 1 egg, 4 cups all-purpose-flour
- Cover the dough, or place in an airtight container and leave to rest for at least 5 hours at room temperature.
- Preheat your oven to 170°C or 340°F top to bottom heat.
- Roll the dough to an approximate thickness of 5 mm using a rolling pin (affiliate link). As the dough is very sticky, I recommend using a non-stick baking mat or rolling it out directly on the baking parchment. You might also find that the dough is sticking to your rolling pin (affiliate link). To prevent that from happening, I used cling film on top of the dough. - if you find the dough is too dry and starts cracking, you can carefully brush a little milk on top.
- Using your cookie cutter or a self-cut template, cut out the hearts and place them on a tray lined with parchment.
- Using a small round object, cut out the two holes so the string can thread through later.
- Bake in the oven for about 12-15 minutes. Check that they do not turn too dark.
- Leave to cool completely before decorating.
Decorating the Gingerbread Hearts
- Place the egg whites in a clean mixing bowl. (If there are any traces of oil in the bowl, the eggs might not stiffen. If in doubt, wipe the bowl with some vinegar).2 egg whites
- Add a pinch of salt and whisk the eggs until soft peaks form.1 pinch salt
- Add the powdered sugar and lemon juice in small portions.4 cups powdered sugar , 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- The icing should stick to the whisk but still be soft enough to be piped.
- Divide the icing into small portions. Add the food coloring as desired. Remember that if the food coloring is liquid, you might need to add more powdered sugar again to gain the right consistency. Make sure to keep some white icing for the writing.Foodcolouring
- Fill the icing in your piping bag (affiliate link) or syringe. I recommend using a star tip to decorate the outside and a fine tip for the writing.
- One tip is to test your designs on baking parchment before decorating the hearts. If needed, you can always scoop up the icing with a spoon and place it back into the piping bag (affiliate link) for later.
Notes
Tips to decorating the lebkuchen hearts
- Start with the writing then continue to the outside.
- Test your piping on a bit of baking parchment before applying it to the cookie.
- If you are unsure of the spacing, edge the letters with a skewer lightly on the cake and then trace with the icing.
- Icing loses shape after you pipe it, it is too liquid and you need to add more sugar.
- Icing is too hard and dry - add a little lemon juice to make it more liquid.
- Prepare ornamental decorations - You can make little flowers, hearts or stars by piping them on some baking parchment. Once they are dry you can stick them on with a little icing. This is an easier way than doing it directly on the cakes.
CJE says
The Lebkuchen hearth have been around longer than the 1960s. I grew up in the 1950 and at any fest there was a stand selling them in the 1950s. I have always loved and enjoyed them. Sometimes I waited too long g to eat them, because they were do pretty, so I had to break then into pieces because they were so hard. We did not have microwaves in the 50s😃
Marita Sinden says
Thank you for sharing your childshoot memories with us 🙂
Allison says
I did not rest the dough but for 30 minutes and made smaller cookie hearts for the Santa train coming through town. I only baked for 8 minutes and they turned out great. I wish I could share a photo of how well they turned out. ❤️🎅🎄
Marita Sinden says
Thank you Allison! I am glad the recipe worked out for you! Ready for Santa ❤️
Melissa says
Hi there! What a great recipe. I used your homemade spice mix and the cookies have amazing flavor. When it comes to resting the dough, can you tell me how long you can leave the dough out to rest at a maximum? I've seen some recipes say to leave the dough out at room temp for half a day or more, and I'm curious just how long you can leave it out to develop before baking, and with the butter and egg in the dough, what's safe? Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Marita says
Hi Melissa, thanks for your comment. I am glad you enjoyed it. I tried to research how long you can keep the Lebkuchen dough and in some forums in Germany it says up to 4 months. I myself never left it for longer than 3 days though.
Rebecca - Glutarama says
My daughter and I love Lebkuchen and these hearts are adorable. Not sure why they only come out at Christmas here in the UK, we should have them all year round in my opinion.
Jeri says
These cookies are so cute! I love all of the different quotes and sayings that you included! I plan to make these before Christmas! Thank you!
Mihaela | https://theworldisanoyster.com/ says
Ahh, we only see them in the UK around Christmas, or at least we used to. There were no Christmas markets last year, and no Germans came to Bristol with their goodies:( I am so glad that you wrote this recipe with easy instructions! I always wanted to make my own, but it was easier to buy them:))) I will surely decorate a few gingerbread hearts this year!
Freya says
What a lovely recipe, and what that family traditions are made of! Thank you for sharing
Ali says
These are so cute! I love gingerbread and these would make a lovely personalised gift.
Marita says
Yes I do think they are enjoyed best when given as a present.
Jere Cassidy says
Your cookies are very cute and I do love your homemade template.This recipe is on my list of cookies to make as I have always been intrigued by Lebkuchen and all the spices.
Marita says
You have to let me know what you think of them when you made them.
Joanna says
I will make them around Xmas and have students in my German 101 class decorate them. A bit of holiday fun in the classroom. Vielen Dank!
Marita says
Oh that would be a fun activity. Hope they like them.
Choclette says
Lebkuchen have been on my list of things to make for years. Not sure why I haven't got around to it yet as they are so delicious. Great to have an authentic German recipe to try now. Such fun to see the icing and find out what it all means.
Pinned
Marita says
Thank you Choclette, it is such a fun thing to make.
Lesley says
Fantastic recipe, I love Lebkuchen, easily my favourite sweet treat at this time of year. Your recipe is packed full of spices, making these super delicious!