Christmas 'Gingerbread' (Finnish Spiced Biscuits)
A robust, spiced cookie that can be used as an alternative to traditional gingerbread for both individual biscuits and Christmas houses. Decorate using melted chocolate, glacé or royal icing, with small sweets and sprinkles.
Servings 30 biscuits
Ingredients
- 140 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 100 g golden caster sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 100 ml golden syrup
- 1 tsp ground cardamom seeds (can be obtained by grinding the seeds from 2tsp cardamom pods)
- 1 tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp grated orange zest
- 450 g plain flour, sifted
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and 50g of the sugar until pale and fluffy.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg with the remaining 50g sugar until pale and thick (the 'ribbon stage'). You should be able to draw a figure of eight with the batter as it falls from the whisk.
- Combine the bicarbonate of soda with the golden syrup, then pour into the butter mixture and mix well. Add the beaten egg mixture and mix again.
- Add the spices, orange zest and flour to the bowl and mix thoroughly, until a cohesive dough has formed. Form the dough into a ball, wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Once the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 190°C and line 2 baking trays with baking paper. Remove the dough from the fridge and place it on a floured surface and roll it out to the thickness of a £1 coin. Cut out shapes using a cookie cutter, and place on a lined baking tray.
- Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 6-8 minutes, depending on the size. Allow to cool fully before decorating.