Four years ago we spent Christmas in Austria. We’d almost gotten to the stage of flipping a coin between there and the Greek Islands. It was a tough choice. In the end we went with Austria because the promise of a white Christmas was just too alluring. Little did we know when we booked our holiday in June that by the time December rolled around Austria would be experiencing one of it’s warmest winters on records, and one of the poorest ski-seasons they’d ever had (it was actually near non-existant, there’d been that little snow). We were absolutely gutted. However, miracle of miracles occured, and the only time it snowed the whole 10 days we were there was on Christmas morning. And the region of Salzburg we were in was one of the very few places it fell. How much did that make my heart sing!
That is one of my strongest memories from Christmas 2006. That and the fact that we arrived late on Christmas eve, well after all the shops were closed, only to find the majority of eating places were closed on Christmas Day. So for Christmas dinner we dined on frozen pizza bought from the petrol station on the way back to the hotel, followed by a beautiful hand-made selection of Lebkuchen, left for us by the apartment owners. Whenever I think of our time there, and that day, the smell of ginger and cinnamon, and the to-die-for deliciousness of the traditional German Christmas cookies floods my mind. I can still smell them. And taste them. And am taken right back to our little apartment, just across the road from the creek that marked the boundry between Austria and Germany.
When we returned back to England, in the New Year, bringing with us as much Lebkuchen as we could carry in our cases without looking like we were trafficking gingerbread, we decided we would hunt down the perfect lebkuchen recipe and make it ourselves (or, rather, myself) every Christmas. And I have. It was one of the first real Christmas traditions we started as our own little family, and it warms my heart, as well as my belly, with each ‘little’ bite I eagerly consume.
Today I finished icing and spreading the chocolate on this year’s batch. Sixty seven cookies in total, which sounds like a lot, but they’ll be lucky to make it to Christmas. And, yes, Christmas is only five days away. You have no idea just how much we love our cookies in this house. Especially when they come with coffee.
They may not be the most traditional looking Lebkuchen, but they’re part us, and part Austrian/German, which makes them just perfect to me. And that’s just how they taste as well.
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And this is our one and only White Christmas.
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And as a last minute addition, just in case you’re now feeling motivated to make your own Lebkuchen this Christmas (you still have 5 days) here is the recipe I use:
DOUGH
Beat together in a large bowl until creamy:
1 packed Cup of dark brown sugar (only if you have the luxury of choosing what kind of brown sugar you use, unlike us Aussies who just get ‘Brown Sugar’).
3/4 Cup of honey and
1/4 Cup softened, unsalted butter (I use salted. I need my salt.)
Add 2 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one.
Mix in nut flour at low speed until just blended.
NUT FLOUR
Finely grind the following ingredients in a food processor (though I like to leave mine a little course and nutty):
3/4 Cup hazelnuts
3/4 Cup sliced almonds (or any kind of skinless ones. Unless you prefer almonds with their skin on.)
2 & 3/4 Cups plain (all purpose) flour
3 Tablespoons cocoa powder (use the good stuff)
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking (bi-carbinate) soda.
Stir in 1/2 Cup of candied fruit (orange, lemon etc)
Preheat your oven to 350′ F or 175′ C
Line some baking sheets with baking paper (you know – the stuff that stops everything sticking to the pans, so you don’t end up with half your chocolate cake staying behind when you tip it out… That stuff.) Roll 1-1.5 Tablespoons of dough into balls then place on baking sheet and flatten slightly. It’s highly advisable to dampen your hands between rolling each cookie. You’ll see what happens if you don’t.
Bake the cookies in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, switching position halfway through baking, until surface no longer appears wet – which should be about 15-20 minutes. I’m lazy though, so just put the sheets in the middle of the oven and give them a quick twist at about the 10 minute mark.
When the cookies have cooled, brush the tops with a mixture of 2 cups of icing (confectioners) sugar to 3 tablespoons of water. Spread it nice and thin, unless you have a super, super, sweet tooth. Or no teeth at all – then it doesn’t matter. Alternatively, brush with melted chocolate. Then eat.
Narrelle x