Pepernoten cookies are spicy little Dutch cookies baked up in early December to celebrate the feast of sinterklaas. They are chewy little cookies with a beautifully nutty flavor laced with warm spices of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger. They are perfect along side a cup of afternoon tea for the holiday season, but something that you will most likely crave year round.
Let’s get started…
In a large bowl, whisk 200 grams of all purpose flour (about 1 1/3 cup) with 115 grams of brown sugar (about 2/3 cup), 3/4 teaspoon of baking powder, a pinch of salt, 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon of cloves and 1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger.
Add 3 tablespoons of whole milk and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract and then drop in 8 tablespoons of softened butter sliced into a few portions. Dividing the butter into several pieces will help you to work it into the cookie dough easier than adding an entire stick in one piece.
Use a fork, pastry cutter or silicone spatula to begin working the softened butter into the cookie dough. Once the butter has mostly been incorporated, you may want to use your hands to gently knead the dough until the butter has been fully incorporated.
Using a greased teaspoon or tablespoon cookie dough scoop (depending on how small you want your cookies to be), pick up the dough and gently roll it into round balls in your hands. Transfer the balls of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet leaving an inch or inch and a half between each ball.
Bake the cookies in a 350 degree oven for about 12 minutes or until they feel puffed and lightly set. These cookies can be transferred onto a cooling rack right away to begin cooling.
Although this is not traditional, I like adding a little dusting of spiced sugar over half of the cookies once they are baked. To do this, simply dip the tops of each cookie quickly in melted butter and then into a few tablespoons of granulated sugar with a pinch of cinnamon and cloves. I love the crunch it adds to these cookies, but it is definitely an optional step.
If you are a fan of the warm spiciness of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ground ginger then you should definitely give these pepernoten cookies a try. They are soft, but slightly chewy and absolutely crammed fulled of such warm, comforting flavors.
Whether you enjoy your pepernoten alongside a little shot of espresso or a big mug of hot tea, one thing is for certain… you are going to wish that the feast of sinterklaas came around more than once a year, because these cookies are simply wonderful.
Pepernoten Cookies
Ingredients
- 200 grams of all purpose flour (about 1 1/3 cup)
- 115 grams of brown sugar (about 2/3 cup)
- 3/4 teaspoon of baking powder
- a pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon of cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger
- 3 tablespoon of whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 8 tablespoons of salted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons of butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar with a pinch of cinnamon and cloves
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
- In a large bowl, combine 200 grams of all purpose flour with 115 grams of brown sugar, 3/4 teaspoon of baking powder, a pinch of salt, 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon of cloves and 1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger
- Add 3 tablespoons of whole milk and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract and mix to distribute
- Add 8 tablespoons of softened butter and work it in using a stiff spoon. Once a dough begins to form, lightly knead the dough with your hand until all of the dry ingredients have been fully incorporated into the dough
- Use a greased cookie dough scoop to transfer tablespoons of dough rolled into balls onto a parchment lined baking sheet
- Bake the cookies in a 350 degree oven for about 12 minutes or until the cookies are lightly golden and feel softly set
- Transfer the cookies onto a cooling rack
- Optionally, dip the tops of each cookie into melted butter and then into cinnamon sugar before serving
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature
