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Glazed speculaas biscuits recipe

21 ratings

Speculaas are traditional Dutch Christmas biscuits, gently spiced with cinnamon and ginger and often imprinted with festive decorations. In a twist on the classic recipe, cocoa has been added to the biscuit dough, which can be made ahead and frozen until ready to bake. Stamped with pretty snowflakes, these Christmas biscuits make a great gift for a loved one, or can simply be enjoyed as a treat with a warming winter drink. See method

Makes 12
22 mins to prepare and 18 mins to cook, plus chilling, cooling and setting
242 calories / serving
Freezable
Vegetarian

Ingredients

100g butter, softened
110g light soft brown sugar
120g black treacle
1 medium egg yolk
250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp ground ginger
1½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice
2 tbsp cocoa powder
100g icing sugar, sifted
2 tbsp lemon juice

Each serving contains

Energy
1020kj
242kcal 12%
Fat
8g 12%
Saturates
5g 23%
Sugars
25g 28%
Salt
0.2g 3%

of the reference intake
Carbohydrate 42.2g Protein 3g Fibre 1.2g

Method

Put the butter, sugar, treacle and egg yolk in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk until smooth.
Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, spices and cocoa powder into a separate bowl with a pinch of salt, then add to the wet ingredients. Slowly beat them together until a thick dough forms. Knead briefly in the bowl to bring the dough together, being careful not to overmix. Shape into a large, flat disc, then wrap in cling film and transfer to the fridge to chill for 30 mins. Preheat the oven to gas 4, 180°C, fan 160°C and line 2 large baking sheets with nonstick baking paper.
Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to 5mm thick and cut out 12 biscuits with an 8cm round cutter, re-rolling the dough as needed. Dip the patterned base of a heavy, cut-crystal glass in flour; use to stamp patterns onto the biscuits. Transfer them to the lined baking sheets, leaving space between, and bake for 16-18 mins until cracking a little at the edges. Leave to cool for 10 mins on the sheets, then put on a wire rack to cool completely.
Meanwhile, mix the icing sugar with the lemon juice. Dip the cooled biscuits in the icing, pattern-side down, then use a palette knife to smooth o some of the icing so you can see the stamped image. Leave to set for about 1 hr. The biscuits will keep in a sealed container at room temperature for 3-4 days.

Get ahead: Make the dough up to 48 hrs in advance. Keep wrapped and chilled in the fridge, or freeze for up to 3 months.

Tip: If you have one, use a 7cm biscuit stamp instead of the base of a glass in step 3

See more Christmas recipes