Irresistibly fragrant, this speculaas recipe makes a crispy, not-too-sweet cookie that begs to be dipped in coffee. The varied blend of aromatic spices in this recipe creates the signature flavor by which Belgian speculaas cookies have been known for centuries. To enjoy the authentic version of this delicacy, roll the dough to a scant 1/8 inch thick and watch carefully for overbrowning as the cookies bake . Roll the dough to 1/4-inch thickness for a delicious, slightly crunchy spice cookie.
Prep Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours, 27 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/1/4 cups dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 3 1/2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/16 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/16 teaspoon ground white pepper
Preparation:
Cream the butter, sugars, and vanilla until they are thoroughly mixed and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue beating the mixture on medium-high until it turns fluffy again.
Mix the remaining dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Turn the mixer speed to low and stir the dry ingredients into the sugar mixture in thirds, until the dough is fully mixed. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, until it is thoroughly chilled.
Preheat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out the chilled dough to 1/4-inch thick (1/8-inch thick if thin, crispy cookies are preferred) and cut into shapes with a cookie cutter. If desired, use a traditional Belgian speculaas mold by pressing the chilled dough into the mold, cutting away the excess dough, and inverting the mold onto the baking sheet to release the cookie, design-side up.
Bake the cut or molded cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges appear set and just begin to brown. Allow the speculaas to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer them to a wire cooling rack.
This speculaas recipe makes approximately 12 to 18 servings.
