Buttery Lemon Rosemary Heidesand

Zitronen-Rosmarin-Heidesand

So you are looking for cookies that melt in your mouth, have a slight hint of rosemary and taste lemony? Then look no further. These buttery lemon rosemary Heidesand cookies are for you. You do require a bit of chilling for these, but I personally think they are so worth the effort. And once you got them chilled, these are your typical slice and bake cookies. I actually once took a shower in the morning while they were baking, just to be sure I had them all fresh on that day.

Zitronen-Rosmarin-HeidesandHeidesand or Heidesand cookies are the best cookies from the north of Germany, if you ask me. The name Heidesand comes from the place they originated from, the Lüneburger Heide is known for its sandy soil. And since these cookies do look like sand, that’s where they got their name from. Since my simple Heidesand recipe went through the roof as Delish considered them one of ten German Christmas cookies you need to try, I decided to make this version of Heidesand. I love the twist of lemon and rosemary, such a nice flavor combination.

Zitronen-Rosmarin-HeidesandWhat I like best of these cookies is the fact that they do keep a while. If kept in an airtight container, you can keep them for a few weeks. Mind you, if they actually are still around at that point…

Zitronen-Rosmarin-Heidesand

Buttery Lemon Rosemary Heidesand

Serves: Between 50-60 cookies, depending on size
Prep Time: 30min + chilling Cooking Time: 15min Total Time: 2 hr 30min

Buttery Lemon Rosemary Heidesand

Ingredients

  • 250 grams of butter
  • 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
  • 230 grams of regular sugar
  • 1 vanilla pod
  • 2 tablespoons of milk
  • 340 grams of all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
  • Zest of one full lemon
  • Optional: Regular sugar, some chopped rosemary and a bit of lemon zest

Instructions

1

Melt the butter on the stovetop. Once melted, reduce heat and let simmer for about 5 min. Butter will slowly turn color, once you see brown specks and it smells nutty, it's done. May need a little longer. Meanwhile chop the rosemary and add to the brown butter. Place in fridge for 45min or longer immediately to become solid again.

2

Beat hardened butter with mixer for about two minutes, then slowly add sugar. Add scraped-out vanilla pod and milk and beat until the mixture turns pale.

3

Mix the flour with the baking powder and lemon zest and slowly add to the butter mixture. Knead in last part by hand. If the dough is too crumbly, place in fridge for half an hour.

4

Now divide the dough in three parts and roll each part into a roll with about 3cm in diameter. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour or overnight.

5

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. If desired, you can roll the chilled logs in additional sugar mixed with chopped rosemary and lemon zest. Slice rolls, each cookie should be about 1/2 cm tick. Place cookies on baking sheet, they will rise a little. Bake for about 14-15min, don't brown, they will stay pale.

Zitronen-Rosmarin-Heidesand

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4 Comments

  • Reply
    Lea
    Saturday November 28th, 2020 at 11:36 PM

    Hallo Jenny,
    von deinen Rezepten sehr angetan, habe ich mich nun mal an diesem besonderen Heidesand probiert.
    Ich bin gerade mitten im Prozess (Rollen sind jetzt im Kühlschrank) und frage mich: Backst du bei Umluft beide Bleche gleichzeitig oder empfiehlst du hintereinander Backen (und dabei bleibt die Frage: Umluft oder Ober-/Unterhitze)? Der Teig schmeckt auf jeden Fall schonmal super!
    Liebe Grüße
    Lea

    • Reply
      Jenny
      Sunday November 29th, 2020 at 08:25 AM

      Liebe Lea, ich backe immer Ober- und Unterhitze, nur in ganz wenigen Fällen mit Umluft, also nacheinander. Berichte auf jeden Fall!

  • Reply
    Lea
    Tuesday December 1st, 2020 at 02:44 PM

    Liebe Jenny, vielen Dank für die prompte Anwort! Ich habe es genau so gemacht und die Plätzchen sind sehr lecker geworden, ich würde nur nächstes Mal etwas weniger Zucker nehmen. Die Rollen waren bei mir trotz langer Kühlung etwas brüchig, sodass ich die meisten Kekse auf dem Bleck wieder aus mehreren Teilen zusammenfügen musste, und die Zuckermischung hat nicht so gut am Teig gehaftet, aber dem Resultat hat beides offenbar nicht geschadet. Der Rosmaringeschmack ist echt super! Mein Mitbewohner hat für sich noch die etwas absurd anmutende, seiner Meinung nach aber sehr leckere Variante gefunden, die (fertigen) Kekese mit Kakao zu bestäuben…

    • Reply
      Jenny
      Tuesday December 1st, 2020 at 03:51 PM

      Oh, Kakaopulver, das klingt wirklich abgefahren! Bei mir sind die Kekse noch nie zerbrochen, hast du sie evtl. sehr dünn geschnitten? Ich glaube viel liegt an der Buttersorte, evtl. nächstes Mal etwas mehr Milch hinzugeben. Danke auf jeden Fall für dein Feedback und wenn du magst, kannst du noch Sterne verteilen.

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