Piparkakut Gingersnap Recipes

PIPARKAKUT

Steps:

• Heat the butter, sugar, molasses, spices, pepper and orange zest over medium heat, constantly stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 4 to 5 minutes. Pour into a large bowl and cool until tepid, about 20 minutes.
• Add the egg, salt and baking soda and beat well to combine. Add half the flour and beat until barely combined. Add the remaining flour and beat until barely combined. The dough should be sticky but manageable; if it is too wet, add a little flour. Form into a large ball and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Divide the dough in two. Place one half on a floured work surface, and sprinkle a little flour on top. With a floured rolling pin, roll dough to between 1/16- and 1/18-inch thick. Sprinkle flour on work surface as needed to prevent sticking.
• Cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Arrange about 1/2 inch apart on a greased cookie sheet. Beat egg white with 1/4 cup water and lightly brush on the cookies. Sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until cookies begin to darken around the edges. Let cool one minute before transferring to racks to cool. Gather leftover dough, roll it out again, and continue to cut out and bake the remaining dough.

SWEDISH PEPPARKAKOR COOKIES

Steps:

• Add the sugar, honey, and milk to a small saucepan. When measuring a "scant" cup of the honey and the milk, you want to it to be just under 1/2 cup, but not closer to 1/3 cup. If you can measure in milliliters, its exactly 100 milliliters.
• Bring to a boil then turn off the heat and let cool slightly.
• Add the butter and the spices to a mixing bowl, and pour the warm syrup mixture over them. Mix until the butter is melted and everything is combined.
• Sift the baking soda, salt, and flour together, and then add to the butter and the syrup mixture. Mix until everything is evenly incorporated.
• Shape the dough into a flat disk, and chill in the fridge overnight or up to 48 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350F. Roll out dough to about 3/8" thick and cut out using cookie cutters.
• Arrange cookies on a baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes, until slightly puffed and golden.
• Allow to cool completely before icing.
• Mix the powdered sugar with just enough water to make a smooth but thick glaze. Divide the icing into smaller batches if you want to make different colors. You can also flavor the icing with a little vanilla extract or almond extract if you'd like. For pipping lines and small designs, keep your icing pretty thick so that it won't spread, there should be a little resistance when mixing it with a whisk. For covering the entire cookie like the green and blue reindeer, add a bit more water to the icing so that it goes on smoothly and is easier to cover the whole cookie before it starts to dry and crack. Try some icing on a test cookie if you're not sure about the texture!
• For the light blue color I used, add 2-3 drops of food coloring to 1 cup or so of glaze.
• For the darker green/blue color, add a couple drops of green and blue, and a tiny touch of red to tone the color down a bit.
• Place the icing in ziplock bags or a piping bag fitted with a very small tip. Cut a tiny corner off of the ziplock bags if using. Decorate, and allow to harden completely before moving or stacking.

PIPARKAKUT - FINNISH GINGER COOKIES

Steps:

• Combine butter, sugar, corn syrup and spices in a saucepan.
• Over low-medium heat, stir ingredients constantly until ingredients look like they are about to boil.
• Remove from heat and transfer to a mixing bowl.
• Allow sugar mixture to cool to room temperature.
• Stirring occasionally might help speed up this process.
• Stir eggs into cooled sugar mixture.
• Sift flour and baking soda together and add to sugar mixture.
• Mix well.
• Roll dough into a ball.
• Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours or overnight.
• Split dough into 2 parts; Roll dough about 1/4-inch thick on a clean, floured surface.
• Cut into desired shapes.
• Bake in preheated oven at 350°F for about 10-15 minutes, or until firm to the touch.
• Cookies can be left plain, or decorated with pipped icing.
• NOTE: This makes a crisp cookie, if a softer cookie is desired you may substitute brown sugar for the granulated sugar.

PEPPARKAKOR (SWEDISH GINGER COOKIES)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, combine the butter, both sugars, molasses, ginger, cinnamon, orange extract, salt, cloves, and pepper. As the butter melts, whisk until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to simmer. Remove from heat. Cool until just warm to the touch, about 30 minutes.
• Whisk the egg into the cooled mixture until smooth. Pour over the dry ingredients and fold with a rubber spatula until no dry flour remains. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
• Heat the oven to 350 F with racks in the upper- and lower-middle positions. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Working with a tablespoonful of dough at a time, use dampened hands to roll into balls. Arrange 12 dough balls on each baking sheet, spacing evenly.
• Lay a sheet of plastic wrap over the balls on each sheet and use the bottom of a dry measuring cup to flatten each to about ¼ inch thick. Remove the plastic and bake until richly browned, 14 to 16 minutes, switching and rotating the baking sheets halfway through to ensure even baking. Cool on the sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

PIPARKAKUT (GINGERSNAP)

Steps:

• Heat the butter, sugar, molasses, spices, pepper and orange zest over medium heat, constantly stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 4-5 minutes. Pour into a large bowl and cool until tepid, about 20 minutes. Add the egg, salt and baking soda and beat well to combine. Add half the flour and beat until barely combined. Add the remaining flour and beat until barely combined. The dough should be sticky but manageable; if it is too wet, add a little flour. Form into a large ball and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours. Heat oven to 350°F. Divide the dough in two. Place one half on a floured work surface, and sprinkle a little flour on top. With a floured rolling pin, roll dough to between 1/16 and 1/8 inch thick. Sprinkle flour on work surface as needed to prevent sticking. Cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Arrange about ½ inch apart on a greased cookie sheet. Beat egg white with ¼ cup water and lightly brush on the cookies. Sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until cookies begin to darken around the edges. Let cool one minutes before transferring to racks to cool. Gather leftover dough, roll it out again, and continue to cut out and bake the remaining dough.