Aqra bil-Malti: Riċetta: Lebkuchen – gallettini Ġermaniżi għal żmien il-Milied
These German-style biscuits contain a number of spices and they smell mouth-watering delicious while baking. They are very easy to make and, with a little supervision, the kids can have a go at making them to give as gifts or to hang on the Christmas tree.
Makes: 35 biscuits
Ingredients:
- 50 g butter
- 60 g brown sugar
- 60 ml treacle
- 1 egg
- 265 g flour
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 egg white
- 230 g icing sugar
Instructions:
- Place the butter, sugar and honey in a small saucepan and heat on low. Stir for 2-3 minutes until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
- Pour the mixture into a bowl. Add the egg and mix well until combined with the mixture.
- Sieve the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, clove powder and ground nutmeg.
- Mix everything together until well combined.
- Sprinkle your working surface with flour and tip the mixture onto it. Work the dough until it is smooth, make into a ball and cover in cling film. Place in the fridge for an hour.
- Preheat oven to 180 C. Line two baking sheets with baking paper.
- Divide the dough into two and roll out one of the portions to a thickness of 5 mm. Use cutters in Christmas shapes - stars, Christmas trees etc. - to cut out the biscuits.
- What is left of the dough, work again and allow it to rest in the fridge for a while before rolling it out and cutting out more biscuits. Do this until all the dough has been used up.
- Place on the baking sheets and bake for 5-7 minutes or until golden. Remove the biscuits from the oven and allow to cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to allow to cool further.
- Place the egg white in a bowl and beat until it starts to create solid peaks. Sieve the icing sugar over it and combine until smooth. Place the mixture in a piping bag and decorate the biscuits.
Note: If you would like to hang these biscuits on your Christmas tree, make a hole at the top of each biscuit as soon as they are taken out of the oven. When decorated you may pass a ribbon or string through the hole to hang them.
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