...and a Lucky New Year

In Greece, during the Christmas holidays and all the way up to New Year's, the gambler in everyone comes out. 'Tis the time of poker and black jack playin' and roulette dice rollin'. Well, I suppose during the holidays, Greeks become totally addicted to games of luck.






The members of my family are the definition of the holiday gambler and no, we don't actually go out to any casinos but we kind of bring the casino to our house. Every year, around New Year's, my family's traditions switch from holiday baking and ham glazing to setting the table for a little card game fun.






The green felt tablecloth makes its appearance from the buffet drawer. It is perfectly ironed, no crease to be seen anywhere, no crease that will accidentally make a poker card flip and reveal what a perfect little bluffer my cousin is. The poker chips are all aligned in their boxes, ready to be distributed by my brother among us high rollers (!) and the good quality plastic playing cards are cleaned and ready to be dealt by my uncle, who always gets a kick out of being the card dealer.






Our lucky game of choice is poker. Draw and stud poker, lowball, follow the Queen, roll your own, to name but a few variants of the game. We all gather around the table, we put our game or better yet, our poker faces on and... let the games begin!






I have to say that, we take the game pretty seriously. No funny business is allowed and even if the youngest, more inexperienced members of our extended family play or friends who are newly initiated to our holiday customs join us, they are all expected to follow the same rules. They don't get any special treatment—we call that "tough poker love". How else are they gonna learn?






We bluff, we pass, we bet, we win, we lose, we laugh, we yell, we eat, we drink. Well, food and drinks are always part of whatever activity my family's engaged in and since the games might go on for hours, we surely need something to nibble on and sip. Nibbling is confined to finger food, spiced nuts and chocolate truffles that are passed around if we're in the mood for something sweet, and let me tell you, we always are.






When poker is played, or any card game for that matter, messy food may not be allowed but the drinks, ah the drinks; there are no rules where drinks are concerned. The bar is open and everyone can have whatever they want. Each member of the family has their favorite drink but I always like to be flexible or change things up. Sometimes I go classic, with a brandy or a Scotch, other times I'm in the mood for something sweet, like Port or Sherry, and then there are the times when a cocktail is in order. And it goes something like this; coffee liqueur, vodka, espresso, sugar, milk, ice / mix, pour, drink.






Listen, I'm not crazy about coffee and I'm perhaps one of the few people out there who could live without it but what I'm absolutely nuts about, are coffee-flavored desserts and drinks; coffee flavored alcoholic drinks that is. Espresso cocktails and Cappuccino shots are my favorites of the kind and I urge you to try them on New Year's Eve, right before you give a kiss to your loved one to usher in the New Year.
And then I urge you to try them on New Year's Day, right when you finish your big festive meal and you're waiting for that chocolate dessert to come.






And then I urge you to try them on every other weekend after that, until summer comes and you begin to crave fruity type of drinks. Until then, these are the mixed drinks of my winter and the reasons why you must try them are fairly straightforward. Both of these drinks are delicious, easy to prepare, they don't require fancy or outrageous ingredients and most importantly, they are guaranteed to make you light headed and alert at the same time. Is there anything more you could possibly want from a drink?






P.S. Yours truly rarely wins at poker but we have a saying in Greece "He/She who loses at card games, wins in love".












Espresso Cocktail
Adapted from Robert Schinkel

Have your New Year's kick with this amazing espresso-flavored cocktail. Don't worry if you don't have an espresso maker though. You can use the common instant espresso. Dissolve it in water and you're ready to go.






Yield: 200 ml espresso cocktail / 2 large drinks

Ingredients
80 ml freshly brewed espresso coffee
2 tsp sugar
20 ml coffee liqueur (such as Kahlua)
80 ml vodka
Pinch of ground cinnamon
10 large ice cubes
4 espresso beans, for garnishing (optional)

Special equipment: espresso maker, cocktail shaker, cocktail glasses


Preparation
Make the espresso coffee either by using an espresso maker or by dissolving instant espresso powder in hot water. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Leave the coffee to cool.

In a cocktail shaker (or any other shaker if you don't have a cocktail shaker) add the ice cubes, vodka, coffee liqueur, cinnamon and the cooled espresso. Shake vigorously for 20 seconds and empty the drink in the two cocktail glasses, passing it first through a sieve to get rid of the ice cubes (if you use a cocktail shaker you will not need a sieve because it's already attached to the tip of the shaker).

Garnish the cocktails with the espresso beans and serve immediately.

If you like your cocktail really cold, then add ice cubes to the cocktail glasses before you start preparing the drink. This will make the glasses super cold. Empty the glasses from the ice cubes before pouring in the drink.












Cappuccino Shots

I have been making these shots for many years. I have always enjoyed their "mock" cappuccino flavor but with alcohol, that gives a sweet buzz. Beware though; drink it slowly, otherwise you're going to get really dizzy, really quick.






Yield: 60 ml / 2 shots

Ingredients
20 ml vodka
30 ml coffee liqueur (such as Kahlua)
20 ml evaporated milk, beaten until frothy
Ground cinnamon, for sprinkling

Special equipment: milk frother, shot glasses


Preparation
In a large glass (or in a cocktail shaker), add the vodka and the coffee liqueur. Mix with a spoon and divide among two shot glasses.

Froth the milk with the milk frother and add three to four teaspoons of frothed milk on top of each drink.
Sprinkle with a little ground cinnamon and serve immediately.

I WISH YOU ALL A HAPPY AND LUCKY NEW YEAR!!

There are others like me out there, right?

I'm one of those people who during the Christmas holidays wear the crazy Santa hats and red antler hair pieces and call it fashionable.






I'm one of those people who sing carols till they drop while trimming the tree and sometimes even accidentally drop on the tree while caroling.






I'm one of those people who pretend to be excited when someone offers them a hot cup of Christmas cocoa when deep down inside all they really want is a glass of Scotch.






I'm one of those people who rush out on the afternoon of December 24 to buy all the gifts they said they had already bought weeks in advance.






I'm one of those people who occasionally tell a white lie during the holidays in order to make the ones they love happy.

"No (fill in name of friend/relative here), these cookies were delicious. Nah, that tooth was already chipped anyway"

"Yes (fill in name of niece/nephew/small cousin here), of course there is a Santa Claus"
(I'm not gonna be the one shattering that illusion. Someone else will do it eventually)

"Sure (grandma, grandpa, aunt etc) I love this jacket. Who knew 70's brown-green couch fabrics were back in style"






I'm one of those people who stay up late watching Christmas movies, eating a bowlful of caramel spiced popcorn and getting all teary-eyed and hopeful and believing that human nature is kind and everything is sweets and sugar.
And then, well, you know, I switch the channel to the news and I get a slap in the face.






I'm one of those people who prepare way too much cookie dough because they secretly want to stash it for late-night secret munching.






I'm one of those people who during the holidays (and other occasions) promise their guy a full-fat meal with lots of red meat (just like S likes it) and then make them fish.


There are others like me out there, right?






We're not talking about any kind of fish here though. We're talking about the almighty salmon. It is perhaps my favorite kind of fish and paired with my other favorite kind of food, rice, that was my idea of a perfect meal. Even though I caught S off guard with the fish, he came around once he tasted it. Besides, this was a pretty, pretty, pretty good meal. Salmon with a pomegranate glaze and Armenian rice pilaf.






The salmon is first marinated in olive oil, soy sauce, lime and lemon juice and then slathered with a combination of homemade pomegranate molasses, honey, fresh ginger, garlic and lime zest. The salmon is baked in the oven on high heat and a few minutes later, you are presented with a flavorful and aromatic dish that is full of sweetness from the salmon, with zesty and tangy undertones from the marinade and a sweet sourness from the pomegranate molasses. My mouth is watering as I'm writing the words and recall the taste.






The Armenian rice pilaf was a complete and utter savory delight. Made with basmati rice and vermicelli, lots of butter and pine nuts, it had an incredibly rich, buttery, earthy flavor and a wonderfully crisp texture. The final sprinkling of fresh mint and a few pomegranate seeds elevated the dish, freshened it up and rounded up all the flavors.






This glazed salmon and Armenian rice pilaf are ideal dishes to prepare for a holiday dinner with friends or family or for a dinner for two. Accompanied by a Pinot Grigio and a green salad you'll have a festive, delicious dinner without having to slave in the kitchen for hours. Plus, with all the turkeys and hams and beef going around during the holidays, this is a rather welcomed change, don't you think?












Salmon with Pomegranate Molasses Glaze
Adapted from Lulu Powers

This salmon dish is very easy to prepare and cook. You need to marinate the fish for 1 ½ hours and then bake it in the oven for 7-8 minutes and you're done.

I generally use good quality, low-sodium soy sauce since the taste is the same as that of regular soy sauce but it has less salt (which is only a plus) but you can surely use normal soy sauce. Just use less salt in the marinade.

You can serve the salmon either with the Armenian rice (see recipe below) or with a simple basmati or brown rice.





Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

for the marinade
30 ml (2 Tbsp) soy sauce (preferably low-sodium)
15 ml (1 Tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
15 ml (1 Tbsp) lemon juice, freshly squeezed
15 ml (1 Tbsp) lime juice, freshly squeezed
15 ml (1 Tbsp) honey
2 medium-sized garlic cloves, unpeeled and lightly crushed
1 ½ tsp fresh ginger, finely grated
½ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground white pepper

for the glaze
30 ml (2 Tbsp) pomegranate molasses
15 ml (1 Tbsp) honey
15 ml (1 Tbsp) soy sauce (preferably low-sodium)
1 medium-sized garlic clove, finely minced
1 ½ tsp fresh ginger, finely grated
1 ½ tsp lime zest

4 salmon fillets, skinless and boneless, 180-200 g each
Salt
Freshly ground white pepper

10 g fresh mint, chopped
Pomegranate seeds from one pomegranate

Special equipment: grater, large shallow dish, large rimmed baking pan, cling film, pastry brush


Preparation
Rinse the salmon fillets under cold running water.

for the marinade
In a large shallow dish, combine the soy sauce, extra virgin olive oil, lemon and lime juice, honey, crushed garlic, ginger, salt and pepper.
Add the salmon fillets to the dish, coating both sides with the marinade.
Cover the dish with cling film and refrigerate for 1 -1 ½ hours. Turn the salmon fillets every 20 minutes or so.


Preheat your oven to 220 degrees Celsius.


for the glaze
In a medium-sized bowl, add the pomegranate molasses, honey, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and lime zest. Whisk everything together.


Take salmon out of the refrigerator and place fillets onto a large, rimmed baking pan. Season each fillet with a little salt and a little freshly ground white pepper. Using a pastry brush (or even your hands if you don't have one), brush the fillets with half of the glaze.
Place pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake salmon fillets for 5 minutes, until they are slightly browned.
Take pan out of the oven and brush the fillets with the remaining glaze. Return to the oven and bake for further 3 minutes, until the fish is richly glazed and almost cooked through.

Serve the salmon
Transfer fillets to the plate and garnish with the chopped fresh mint and the pomegranate seeds. Serve immediately along with the Armenian rice (see recipe below) or with any other side dish you have prepared.











Homemade Pomegranate Molasses

This is an extremely easy way to make homemade pomegranate molasses. The taste is sweet but a little tart as well.
You can use it not only as an ingredient for glazing salmon but also beef and pork. You can also use it on top of waffles, pancakes and of course, ice cream.





Yield: 250-300 ml

Ingredients
950 ml fresh pomegranate juice (or bottled 100% pomegranate juice)
190 g sugar
60 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed and strained

Preparation
In a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan, add the sugar, lemon juice and pomegranate juice. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring continuously with a rubber spatula until the sugar dissolves. Taste the juice and if you want to add more sugar, do it at this stage. Add the sugar and stir continuously until it dissolves.
Once the juice begins to simmer, reduce the heat to medium or just enough to maintain a simmer. Every now and then remove with a spoon the foam that is gathered on top of the simmering juice.
Simmer for 1 - 1 ½ hours or until the juice has the consistency of syrup. You will end up with about 1 ¼ cups pomegranate molasses.

As the pomegranate molasses cools down, it will become thicker.

Pour the molasses in a glass jar (preferably sterilized) and put it in the refrigerator once it cools completely.

You can keep it in the fridge for up to 4 months.












Armenian Rice Pilaf
Adapted from Lulu Powers

This rice dish is extremely versatile and will serve you well during this holiday season. It is very easy to prepare and you can serve it not only with the glazed salmon but with lamb, pork and beef main dishes.

If you' re looking for a perfectly delicious and not aggressive in taste side dish, this is it.





Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients
400 g basmati rice
90 g unsalted butter
45 g vermicelli or angel-hair pasta, broken into 1 ½-2 cm lengths
900 ml good quality chicken or vegetable stock, warmed
40 g pine nuts
½ tsp salt
Freshly ground white pepper
15 g fresh mint, chopped
Pomegranate seeds from one pomegranate

Special equipment: large sieve


Preparation
Place basmati rice in a large sieve and rinse it well under cold running water, until the water running through is no longer cloudy. Put sieve over a bowl and let rice dry.

In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat.
Add the vermicelli or angel-hair pasta and the pine nuts and sauté them in the butter until they're golden brown, for 3-5 minutes. The butter may foam while you do this.
Add the rice and stir it around in order to get coated with the butter.
Add the warmed chicken stock, the salt and a generous amount of freshly ground white pepper. Stir everything around and once the stock comes to the boil, turn heat down to low, cover the pan with the lid and let rice cook for about 25 minutes, until the rice is tender yet crispy and all the liquid is absorbed.
Check the rice after 20 minutes to make sure it doesn't overcook.

When rice is cooked, take it off the heat and fluff it well with a fork. Cover the pan and let the rice stand for 20 minutes.

Stir in half of the chopped fresh mint and serve the pilaf either in individual dishes or in a large serving bowl. Garnish with the rest of the mint and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds on top.

If you have any rice left, you can certainly eat it the next day. It is equally flavorful.

Sweets and Snow

Have you ever had a song stuck in your head so deep that you just wanted to reach in and yank it out? Well, this is what's been going on for the last five days. This song has penetrated the inner workings of my mind, it has invaded my subconscious and is refusing to get out. I sing it, hum it, out loud or in my head, from the moment I wake up in the morning, throughout the whole day—making some people crazy and suicidal along the way—and before I go to sleep. Are these the first signs of insanity? Or are these the first signs of early Christmas fever?






Oh, the song. Do I have to say it? Ok, "Let it snow". Responsible for this song-that's-stuck-in-my-head-and-will-not-come-out-unless-someone-performs-a-lobotomy-on-me is the sudden snowfall. Yes, it's been snowing like crazy. And yay, I'm happy. I have been deprived of snow for, well, almost my whole life. Born and raised in Athens, Greece where it snows once every five years and with the snow lasting barely a day, I'm acting like a little kid who just discovered the key to the candy shop.






Snow and the upcoming holidays have also woken up the baker in me. Cookies, cakes you name it. I' m in the mood for baking them and, most importantly, eating them. These past few days, I've been focusing my attention on Dutch treats, which is only natural since everywhere you turn you see oliebollen (Dutch fried doughnuts), stroopwafels (Dutch caramel syrup-filled waffles) and speculaas cookies being sold. Here in the Netherlands, the holidays start early, as early as late November, when Sinterklaas (Saint Nicholas) arrives in the country by boat from Spain.






Sinterklaas is the predecessor of the North American Santa Claus and the Anglo-Canadian and British Father Christmas. He is the one who brings presents to the children and keeps track of who's been naughty or nice during the year. He arrives in Holland in late November and then he travels all around the country, riding on his white horse called Amerigo, visiting every city and village, meeting and greeting children everywhere.






Children all around Holland, leave their shoes (sometimes the traditional wooden Dutch clogs) by the fireplace or outside their front door every night, expecting to find presents from Sinterklaas the following morning. Inside the shoes they put a small note, a wish list of the presents they want to get and also hay and carrots for Amerigo, and in return, Sinterklaas sometimes leaves them small toys, candy and treats like chocolate letters (the first letter of the child's name), marzipan cookies and pepernoten (small Dutch spice cookies).






All this culminates to the big day, December 5th, the eve of Saint Nicholas Day. On the evening of December 5th, called Pakjesavond or the Evening of Gifts, Sinterklaas flies over the rooftops of the houses on his horse and with the help of the Zwarte Pieten, brings presents to all the children (much like Santa Claus on Christmas Eve).
Zwarte Pieten (the Black Petes) are Sinterklaas' helpers and they are the ones who go down the chimneys, becoming black from the soot, delivering the presents to the kids. Early next morning, on December 6th, Sinterklaas leaves silently the country and heads back to Spain.






One of the traditional gifts of December 5th is this sweet gift right here; Gevulde Speculaas, meaning filled speculaas cake or Saint Nicholas Slices. Speculaas is a Dutch spice cookie made from a hard dough which is traditionally shaped in carved wooden molds of wind mills and wooden shoes. Nowadays, the gevulde speculaas, which is a different version of this cookie, is more popular. It's made from a more pliable dough which is filled with amandelspijs, a marzipan-like but not exactly, almond paste. The Dutch adore amandelspijs as well as any kind of dessert with almonds in it. They use it in all kinds of desserts and cakes and they even eat it on its own.






The speculaas dough is rolled into two sheets. One sheet goes on the bottom of a square pan and is topped with the amandelspijs. This in turn is topped with the second sheet of speculaas dough, is decorated with blanched almonds, baked in the oven and then gets cut into beautiful little squares. You would think that the top and bottom of the cake is like a hard cookie, right? Wrong. It's nothing like that. The top and bottom layers are thin, soft and crumbly, something between a soft cookie and a brownie and have an intensely spicy flavor which comes from the nutmeg and the cinnamon, the aniseeds and cardamom, and the middle layer, the amadelspijs, is soft and full of almond flavor.






I don't want to bore you with the details of how your house will fill with spicy aromas while baking this cake but I can't resist. It will smell divine and you will get in the holiday spirit in no time. And then, when you taste this cake, you're going to wonder why I haven't come along sooner into your life to give you this recipe. Well, better late than never.






So, if you want to change things up a bit this year and try something different than the ginger and sugar cookies you've always been making, this gevuld speculaas cake is it. I have it for breakfast, as an afternoon treat and after dinner, and these little squares will definitely go into my Christmas gift cookie tins for friends and family. This is a Dutch delight and quite fitting to be the very first Dutch recipe to appear on my blog. And because three is always better than one, I'm also giving you instructions on how to create the famous Dutch speculaas and pepernoten cookies.


By the way, let me introduce to you a new page, the Recipe Index. I hope it helps you in your search for something delicious to cook.











Gevulde Speculaas - Dutch Speculaas Cake filled with Amandelspijs (Dutch Almond Paste)
Adapted from Janny de Moor

This cake is relatively easy to prepare and the speculaas dough can be made one day ahead and kept in the fridge wrapped in cling film. The same applies with the amandelspijs.

I don't grind the almonds too fine for the amandelspijs but instead I leave little bits of almond in, that render a different texture to the almond paste. You can grind them finely if you want, in which case the amandelspijs is smoother and resembles more the common marzipan in texture.

This cake should be baked in a square or rectangular pan but you can use a round pan as well. The pieces of the cake will not be uniformly cut but it's ok.





Yield: one square 21 cm cake

Ingredients

for amandelspijs (almond paste)
200 g blanched almonds
200 g sugar
1 medium-sized egg
One-two drops of almond extract or Amaretto liqueur
1/8 tsp lemon zest, freshly grated

for speculaas dough
125 g unsalted butter, softened
250 g all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground cardamom
½ tsp ground all-spice
A pinch of salt
¼ tsp aniseseeds, crushed
150 g soft dark brown sugar (or muscovado if you can find it)
60 ml full-fat milk

10 g unsalted butter for greasing the pan
Dried fine breadcrumbs for sprinkling over the pan
1 medium-sized egg
1 Tbsp milk + 1 small egg for brushing the top of the cake
50 g blanched, halved almonds for decorating the cake

Special equipment: 21 cm shallow square cake pan, fine sieve, food processor, rolling pin, cling film


Preparation

prepare the amandelspijs (almond paste)
Grind the almonds in a food processor. As I mentioned before, you can either grind them finely or coarsely, depending on what kind of texture you prefer. I grind them coarsely in order to have small bits of almond in the paste. In any case, don't grind them too fine because they will start releasing their oil thus becoming too pasty.

Note: if you can find already ground almonds at your super market you can use them but I find them to be too expensive and I really don't mind grinding my own.

In a large bowl, add the ground almonds, the sugar, the egg, the almond extract or Amaretto liqueur and the lemon zest. Mix everything with your hands and knead until you have a homogeneous mixture. Form a ball and cover in cling film. Place amandelspijs in the refrigerator and leave it there until ready to use.


Note: at this point, you have the Dutch amandelspijs ready to use not only in this sweet but also in many other kinds of cakes or desserts. For example, you can cut small pieces of the paste and add it to a vanilla cake batter (as you would with chocolate chips).

prepare the speculaas dough
Sift the flour with the baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, all-spice and salt into a large bowl. Add the crushed aniseeds and dark brown sugar and stir with a spatula. Add the butter and, using two knives or a pastry cutter (this is the one I use) or even your fingertips, cut it into the flour mixture, until you have a mixture that resembles coarse bread crumbs.

Then, knead the mixture with your hands, adding all of the milk a spoonful at a time, until you have a smooth and elastic dough. Form the dough into a ball, cover it in cling film and place it in the fridge for 1 hour (or at least ½ hour).

In the meantime, prepare your pan. Grease the bottom and sides with the butter and then sprinkle with the breadcrumbs to coat. Shake out the excess breadcrumbs.


Take the dough out of the fridge and divide it into two pieces. The one must be a bit larger than the other. Take the larger piece of dough, shape it into a ball and roll it out using a rolling pin. The best way to do that is the following: lay a large piece of cling film onto a smooth surface and onto that, place the dough ball. Place another large piece of cling film on top of the dough ball and using the rolling pin, roll out the ball into a sheet with a thickness of about 0.3 cm and in size a little larger than the size of your pan.
In this way a) the dough will not stick to your work surface so you'll not have to flour it, b) the dough will not stick to the rolling pin and c) it will be easier to transfer the sheet onto the pan without breaking since you will be able to hold it by the cling film.

prepare the cake
Once you roll out the first speculaas dough ball, remove the top piece of cling film. Lift up the sheet from your work surface—holding it by the bottom cling film—and turn the sheet over and onto the pan. Carefully, press the dough so that it lines perfectly the bottom of the pan and ease it up the sides, leaving an overhang. Remove the cling film.

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Take the amandelspijs out of the fridge, remove the cling film and place it inside a medium-sized bowl. Add a medium-sized egg and mix with your hands, incorporating the egg into the almond paste. You will end up with a slightly runny mixture. Spread it over the dough, evening it out with the help of a spatula.


Roll out the second piece of dough just as you did with the first and place it over the amandelspijs. Press the dough lightly all around the edges so the top and bottom sheets are securely sealed. Using a sharp knife, cut off the excess dough. (Keep the dough and use it to make peppernoten-see instructions below).

In a small bowl, break open the small egg and beat it lightly with a fork. Add 1 Tbsp of milk and mix. With the help of a pastry brush, brush the top of the cake.

Take the blanched almond halves and place them one by one on top of the cake. Depending on how you' re going to cut the cake, place the almonds accordingly. I chose to cut it into small squares (you can also cut it into larger rectangular pieces) so I placed the almonds in such a way as to have one almond half on each square. Pierce some small holes near the almonds (so they will not be visible) so that the dough will not rise too much.

Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes, until the top is golden-brown and the almonds take a golden color. The inside of the cake must be cooked completely.

Take the pan out of the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, remove it carefully from the pan and place it onto a cutting board. Cut it into pieces and serve.

You can store the cake in a cookie tin or an airtight container for up to 10 days. As the days pass, the cake will have a more intense, deep and full flavor.










Speculaas Cookies

The above recipe for the speculaas dough is the same one that is used to make the traditional speculaas cookies.
When the dough is baked on its own, without the amandelspijs filling, it becomes harder and more cookie-like.

Traditionally, wooden molds that depict everyday Dutch life are used to shape the cookies but nowadays, the Dutch choose mostly to bake regular sized and shaped speculaas cookies.





Ingredients
see the ingredients above for the speculaas dough

Preparation
Prepare the speculaas dough just as in the above recipe and place it in the fridge for one hour. Take it out of the refrigerator and shape cookies in any shape you like—round cookies, stars, snow flakes, etc with a 0.5-1 cm thickness.

Place the cookies onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper and bake them on the middle rack of the oven, on 180 degrees Celsius, for 15-20 minutes.

Like with the gevuld speculaas, they develop a richer flavor the following days. You can store them in a cookie tin for up to 10 days.










Pepernoten - Small Traditional Dutch Spice Cookies

Using the same speculaas dough recipe, you can make pepernoten (or kruidnoten), which are small spice cookies that are eaten during the holidays in The Netherlands.





Ingredients
see the ingredients above for the speculaas dough

Preparation
Prepare the speculaas dough in the same manner as in the recipe for gevulde speculaas and after you have taken it out of the fridge, shape it into small hazelnut-sized balls. I use the measuring spoon for 1.25 ml (¼ tsp) in order to make all the pepernoten of equal size.

Place the small cookies on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and bake them on the middle rack of the oven, on 180 degrees Celsius, for about 8 minutes. Keep an eye on them because they are very small and they tend to catch easily.

Like with the gevuld speculaas, they develop a richer flavor the following days. You can store them in a cookie tin for up to 10 days.