Ginger Cookies or Biscoff Cookies

Einfacher Gewürz-Spekulatius zum Ausstechen

As is tradition in Germany, we are celebrating the advent, waiting eagerly for Christmas. Therefore each Advent Sunday (there are always four in total, leading up to Christmas) is super special and for that reason I brought along some ginger cookies or Spekulatius, the German name for these nicely spiced cookies. I decided to make them with a neat little cookie cutter, it was so much fun cutting out my blog name. Look at it, such fine and thin lines! If you are scared of  sugar cookies or shortbread, don’t be, I give a lot of tips in this blog post.

Einfacher Gewürz-Spekulatius zum Ausstechen

These ginger cookies are sold everywhere during advent in Germany, so far I have always bought them. They are often used as a cookie crust for cakes, such as in this apple cheesecake with salted caramel. But then it dawned on me that probably I could make them myself. The dough is really easy to prepare, soft butter, flour, and sugar just need one egg to become a workable dough. I love the fact that this cookie can be stored for long periods, can be shipped, and also freezes nicely. It is a Christmas cookie, which you definitely should try.

Einfacher Gewürz-Spekulatius zum AusstechenYou may wonder how I managed to get such thin lines of my blog name to actually show after baking. The secret is to chill the dough a lot. You have to chill the dough before rolling out and also after cutting out the cookies. And the second secret is to use cornstarch instead of flour for dusting and for flouring the surface. I am sure that you will also get these nicely shaped cookies if you follow this approach.

Einfacher Gewürz-Spekulatius zum AusstechenIf you have any further tricks up your sleeve regarding sugar cookies and cutting out cookie stamps, do let me know!

Ginger Cookies or Biscoff Cookies

Serves: About 50 cookies, depening on size
Cooking Time: 10min preparation + chilling + cutting out cookies + 10min of baking

Ingredients

  • 150 grams of butter at room temperature
  • 200 grams of regular sugar
  • 1 egg, size L
  • 300 grams of all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon of cardamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon of ground star anise
  • Cornstarch for rolling and cutting

Instructions

1

Beat the soft butter with the sugar for about two minutes, add the egg and mix for at least 30 seconds. Then add all other ingredients and mix until you can form into a ball. You may have to add a little bit of cold water, depending on your surroundings. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30min.

2

Generously flour your surface with cornstarch (not flour!) and roll out about half of the dough. Place the other half in the fridge. Cut out desired shapes. Be sure to flour your cookie cutter with cornstarch, too.

3

Chill cut-out cookies for at least 15min. Meanwhile line two baking sheets with parchment paper and preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

4

Place the cookies close to each other on the baking sheets. As there is no leavener in them, they will not spread. Bake for about 10min. If kept in an airtight container, they will keep very well.

Notes

These cookies can be easily frozen and shipped. Keep in airtight container.

Einfacher Gewürz-Spekulatius zum Ausstechen

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7 Comments

  • Reply
    Simone
    Monday December 10th, 2018 at 06:47 PM

    Hallo Jenny,

    das ist ja eine tolle Idee!
    Mein Freund hat eine eigene Firma, er ist Fliesen Leger und ich würde einen Keksstempel mit denn Firmen Namen wählen um für die Kunden Weihnachtsplätzchen zu backen.

    Ich wünsche Dir einen schönen Abend und schicke Dir LG

  • Reply
    Tine
    Monday December 10th, 2018 at 07:03 PM

    Hi!
    Eigentlich habe ich gestern schon kommentiert… mmhhh!?
    “Rentier Schmankerl ” wäre mal was anderes! Vlg Tine

    • Reply
      Jenny
      Monday December 10th, 2018 at 07:04 PM

      Stimmt, du musst eigentlich nicht nochmal 😉

  • Reply
    Sabine
    Monday December 10th, 2018 at 10:20 PM

    Hi Jenny!

    Zack, gleich mal Dein Rezept für die Stempelkeks-Spekulatius abgespeichert. Ich habe nicht so sehr viel Erfahrung mit Stempelkeksen, aber ich denke, dass Du ganz richtigliegst mit dem Stauben des Keksstempels und eventuell auch der Teigoberfläche sowie dem Kühlen des Teiges. Meine bisherigen zwei Keksstempel-Aktionen sind damit recht gut gelungen. Für meinen eigenen Stempel fände ich den Auf-/Eindruck ganz lustig: “Hey, bist Du noch ganz knusper?” 😉

    Viele Grüße

    Sabine

  • Reply
    Annushka Sonek
    Tuesday December 11th, 2018 at 04:56 PM

    I think I’d want a cookie stamp that says “You’re lovely!” just to remind us that we can allow ourselves indulgences!

  • Reply
    Ramona Höynck
    Tuesday December 11th, 2018 at 08:37 PM

    Süße Idee, Ich glaube ich würde ‘from mona with love’ nehmen. Bietet sich immer gut an als Weihnachtsgrüße oder Geschenk ?

  • Reply
    Sandra Scholl
    Thursday December 13th, 2018 at 11:19 PM

    Hallo,

    das ist ja eine tolle Idee:) Ich würde mir einen Stempel mit dem Namen meines Freundes und mir machen lassen und ihm dann die Plätzchen schenken 🙂

    Liebe Grüße
    Sandra

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