Christmas Speculoos Cookies (Belgian Gingerbread Cookies)
By: Sheri Wetherell
Published: Monday, December 14, 2020 - 3:45pm

Ingredients




3 1/2 sticks (400 grams) butter, softened to room temperature
2 1/2 cups (500 grams) brown sugar
3/4 cup (200 grams) demerara sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup (50 ml) water
8 cups (1 kg) flour
2 1/2 teaspoons (10 grams) baking powder
2 1/2 teaspoons (10 grams) speculoos spices (recipe below)
Speculoos Spice Blend:
About a 1/4 cup
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) ground cardamom
1 teaspoon (4 grams) black pepper
1 teaspoon (4 grams) ground ginger
2 teaspoons (8 grams) ground cloves
2 teaspoons (8 grams) ground nutmeg
6 teaspoons (24 grams) cinnamon

Preparation

1 In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a standing mixer add the softened butter and sugars and mix well. Beat in the egg, then add the water and continue to mix. 2 Sift the flour with the baking powder and speculoos spices into the dough. Knead until you have a crumbly dough. 3 Roll into a ball and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight. 4 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 C). 5 Roll out the dough to about 1/4-inch-thick and cut with a cookie cutter. 6 Place cookies onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for about 14 minutes. Press the center of a cookie and when it rises back, then it is ready. 7 Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet before removing. Speculoos is still soft when it comes out of the oven, but they harden once cooled. 8 Ice as you desire or leave them plain.

About

Based on a recipe from Juliette's Speculoos: Recipes from Bruges' most charming biscuit bakery. 
Speculoos are traditionally cut into windmill shapes and left un-iced. You can find cutters or fun patterned wooden rolling pins on Amazon. Otherwise, any Christmas cookie cutter will do!