Pepperkaker Recipe
Recipe provided by Fredrik Nygaard
Pepperkaker, or Norwegian Ginger Bread, is the essential cookie for Christmas.
No other cookie is more directly associated with a Norwegian Christmas. And
this recipe, which has been in my family for generations, is one of the most
tasty ones around. This recipe was a closely guarded secret until ten years
ago, when it was published by my grand mother in a popular colunary magazine
in Norway and is now a 'public secret' for all to enjoy.
What You'll Need
- 100g/4oz/1 stick of butter
- 200g/8oz/1 cup of sugar
- 200g/8oz/1 cup of blond syrup such as Caro Corn Syrup
- 2 eggs
- 2 tea spoons of ground cinamon
- 2 tea spoons of ground cloves
- 2 tea spoons of ground ginger
- 600g/24oz/6 cups of flour
What to do
- Melt, mix and cool down the butter, sugar and syrup.
- Mix in the eggs.
- Add and blend in the spices.
- Add and mix in the flour to a hard dough.
- Leave in a cool place for 24 hours.
Bring out the dough the next day, roll out and cut it into shapes
before baking:
- Break off handfulls of the dough and roll out to a thin (2mm or almost
see through) wafers. Use plenty of flour to prevent the dough from sticking to the
table.
- Use traditional cookie-shape-cutters or a knife to cut cookies into
hearts, men, women, pigs, stars and other christmas motives.
- Put the cookies on a greased/non-stick baking sheet, or use non-stick paper,
and bake for 5 to 7 minutes on 180 degrees C / 350 degrees F.
Make sure all the cookies on a single baking sheet are equally thick, or
else some may burn while others will be too raw. The cookies have a nice
healthy tanned look when they are baked correctly.
Enjoy! And 'God Jul'.
