Recipes

Speculaas

Cookies 

• Cooking Time: 12 minutes
• Servings: 5 dozen
• Preparation Time: 20 minutes
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/1/4 cups dark brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 1/2 tablespoons speculaas spice*
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• * Speculaas spice:
• 8 parts cinnamon
• 2 parts nutmeg
• 2 parts ground cloves
• 1 part white pepper
• 1 part ground ginger
• 1 part cardamom
• This combination of spices can be found in recipes dating back to the fifteenth century

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cream butter, vanilla, and both kinds of sugar until light and fluffy. Add both eggs and blend well.

Whisk all of the dry ingredients together and slowly add to the butter mixture, combining until the dough pulls from the side of the bowl.

Divide the dough in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Roll out dough to 1/4" or 1/8" thick and cut with cookie cutters. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

My father was Dutch baker and specialized in these classic Dutch cookies. I was determined to find a recipe that would rival the ones he used to make. We called them Windmill cookies back then because he used a windmill mold to shape the dough. I found a passable recipe on Martha Stewart's site a while back, but I really wanted to perfect the spices. I was able to find a great combination of spices on a Dutch website, so I combined the recipes and came up with these! Now I just need the windmill mold and they will be perfect....