Nutty, crunchy, and fragrant with plenty of sweet spices, these cookies are definitely among my favorites, having sampled many different types of bredele (Christmas cookies).
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1¼ cups (125 g) ground almonds
- 1 lemon juice and zest
- 1 orange zest
- ½ cup (125 g) finely chopped candied orange, or ⅓ cup/100 g chunky marmalade, strained and orange pieces chopped
- 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
- ½ cup plus 1 tbsp (125 g) butter
- ¾ cup (150 g) packed dark brown sugar
- 1 egg, beaten
How to Make It
- In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, ground almonds, lemon zest, orange zest, candied orange, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Add the egg, followed by the lemon juice. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until fully incorporated. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or, ideally, overnight.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment. Divide the dough in half and roll between two sheets of parchment to a thickness of ⅟₁₆ inch.
- Using the cutters, cut out the cookies and place them on the sheet, leaving a finger-width space between them. Repeat until all the dough is used (you can reroll any cut-offs). Refrigerate the cutouts. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake for 10 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are browned. They will be slightly soft when they come out of the oven. Let cool on a wire rack. The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 month.