Speculaas

Enjoying these Dutch windmill cookies is probably as Dutch as my husband gets. I usually buy them from Aldi, they are quite good, I love them with coffee, love the aroma of the spice blend. I decided to make a batch as Christmas gifts.

Pretty Xmas trees in a row. Cute!

I added some flaked almonds as the base like the ones they sell in Aldi. The problem is the nuts won't stick on the back very well.

Aren't these pretty?

Recipe

Ingredients:

3 cups plain flour

1/8 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp mace (or use nutmeg if you can't find mace)

1 tsp ground white pepper

A pinch of salt

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup flaked almonds

Method:

1. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in the egg.
2. Mix the spices and baking powder into the flour.
3. Stir in half the flour through the butter mixture.
4. Slowly add in the other half and add the almonds.
5. Knead lightly until all even.
6. Wrap dough in cling wrap and chill in fridge for a few hours.
7. Preheat oven to 180C.
8. Flatten the chilled dough on a floured surface to 1/2 cm thick and stamp out dough with a cookie cutter or use a cookie mold if you can get hold of one.
9. Bake in 180C oven for 20-25minutes.