German Pfeffernüsse Cookies ( German Spice Cookies)
Classic German Christmas cookies. Pfeffernüsse cookies. A soft, spice cookie with hints of honey, molasses and pepper rolled in powdered sugar or dipped in icing.
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 10 ⅛ oz/290g
- ¼ c blanched almond flour 1 oz/30g
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground white pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon ground star anise
- ¼ teaspoon ground mace
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature (4 oz/113g)
- ½ cup firmly packed light-brown sugar 4 oz/115g
- ¼ cup honey 85 gl
- 2 tablespoon unsulfured molasses 35g
- 2 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
For half the cookies:
- 1 ½ c powdered sugar
For the royal icing
- 2 pasteurized egg whites or 1 tablespoon meringue powder
- 3 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoon honey
- 2 c powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoon hot water
Instructions
- In a stand mixer bowl, combine flour, spices and baking soda.
- Combine butter, brown sugar, honey and molasses in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until melted. Remove from heat and stir in cream well. Let cool for 5 minutes then mix in egg, vanilla and lemon zest.
- With mixer on low speed, pour in butter mixture and mix until just combined. The dough will be sticky. Remove half the dough and place on plastic wrap, form a disk then wrap well, repeat with other half of dough. Chill for up to two days.
- When ready to bake, heat oven to 350 Deg F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Pour powdered sugar in a bowl for half the cookies.
- Scoop out dough in scant tablespoon amounts(½ oz/15-16g each); roll into. Arrange balls 1 ½ inches apart on prepared baking sheets.
- Bake until cookies are golden and firm to the touch with slight cracking, about 8-10 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets about 5 minutes. Roll in powdered sugar then cool on wire racks. Roll again when completely cooled. For the cookies that will be dipped in icing, transfer to wire racks to cool completely before icing.
- For the royal icing - whip the egg whites with lemon juice and beat until frothy . Add in the powdered sugar a little at a time until fully incorporated. Then mix again until stiff and glossy. 7-8 minutes. This will be a thick icing. Add in the honey and mix another minute. Thin with hot water one teaspoon at a time until it is pouring consistency but still thick. There will be air bubbles in the icing so transfer to a bowl and place a damp paper towel over it then cover with a lid. Let sit for a bit to get the bubbles out.
- Take the half of the cookies and dip in the icing using a fork. Fully coat the cookies then scrape the icing off the fork on the edge of the bowl. Place back on the wire rack set over a baking sheet until set. You can set these in your oven ( not hot) with the fan on to speed up the drying process.