This is one of the most quintessentially Christmassy cookies. They are rich, spicy and iconic, being so easily cut and decorated. Here is a version that is simple to make, giving the traditional texture which is somewhere between a cake and a biscuit. It’s a spice biscuit, a gingerbread or a Lebkuchen according to your own holiday tradition.
This recipe makes quite a big batch of Lebkuchen, depending on your chosen size of cutter. If you use a very small shape then the baking time will be less so it’s best to have a tray of just one style of cookie, say, a herd of festive reindeer, and bake them before cutting a tray of smaller Christmas stars.
Ingredients:
100g butter
275g honey
120g dark brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground allspice
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 whole eggs
3 tsp cocoa powder
445g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
Method:
Gently heat the butter, sugar and honey in a small pan until the sugar has completely dissolved.
Mix together all the other ingredients in a large bowl or, even better, in the bowl of a mixer with a dough attachment.
Add the heated liquid to the dry ingredients, and mix until well combined.
Leave the dough to cool for an hour at room temperature. This is an important step as the dough is too soft to work with when it’s warm.
Pre-heat your oven to 180°C (160°C if fan-assisted).
Flour the counter well. Roll out the dough to about 1cm thickness and cut out the shapes you would like. Dip the cutter in flour from time to time.
Place the cookies on a tray lined with baking paper, and bake for about 8 minutes. The cookies will be a little soft.
Transfer to a cooling rack. Once cool frost your Lebkuchen with royal icing and sprinkles.
Recipe by Chrissie Walker © 2018