Lebkuchen

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Soft German lebkuchen cookies with honey, almond meal, orange zest, and warm spices, finished with a simple glaze. Makes about 48 cookies.

Prep Time1 12

Cook Time8

Total Time1 20

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: German

Keyword: lebkuchen

Servings: cookies (approx.)

Calories: 165kcal

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter softened
1 cup dark brown sugar
¾ cup honey
2 eggs large
¼ teaspoon anise extract
3 ½ cups almond meal (aka: almond flour)
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoons orange zest (zest of half an orange)
2 tablespoons cocoa powder plus extra for decorating
2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground coriander
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
3 ½ cups all-purpose flour (approx., you may need slightly more or less)
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Beat the butter, brown sugar, and honey together in a large bowl just until smooth and blended.
Stir in the eggs (one at a time) and anise extract, allowing each egg to fully incorporate before adding the next.
Stir in the almond meal, cornstarch, orange zest, cocoa, cinnamon, salt, cloves, baking soda, allspice, coriander, cardamom, and ginger until combined.
Gradually stir in flour (about ¼ cup at a time) until a stiff dough forms and pulls cleanly away from the sides of the bowl (keep adding flour until the dough is no longer sticky).
Working with a small amount of dough at a time, roll the dough between 2 sheets of parchment to a thickness of ⅜-inch.*
Use a 2-inch diameter cutter to cut shapes (link to the cutter I used: Cookie Stamp), gently peeling them off the parchment and placing them on the prepared baking sheets.
Bake until set around the edges but still quite soft and moist towards the centers (approx. 6 to 10 minutes).
Optional: If using a cookie stamp, you can enhance the design by dabbing your fingertip in cocoa powder and rubbing/buffing it into the tops of the cookies.
Stir the powdered sugar and milk together in a small bowl until smooth.
Brush the tops of the cooled cookies with the powdered sugar glaze, then place them on a wire rack to set/dry the glaze.

Notes

Rolling and cutting out the cookies is optional. You can also just scoop 1-inch balls of dough, roll them between your hands to smooth them out, then flatten them slightly onto the baking sheet.

Nutrition