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Prep time
8 hours 10 minutes
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Cook time
20 minutes
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Makes
about 24 cookies
Author Notes
Springerles are typically made using either springerle molds or a springerle rolling pin (but you don’t have to have them, so don’t give up). After patting (or rolling) out the dough, you use the mold or springerle rolling pin to imprint the top of the dough with shapes and designs. You cut the dough into rectangles, set the cookies on baking sheets, and then comes the odd-ball part: You let the cookies sit out overnight to dry out the dough before baking. (Is this safe? I don’t know. I’ve eaten them my whole life and I’m still here.) When you bake them, you do so at a low temperature so the cookies never brown. And after all that, you’re left with a hard, fragrant chip that’s as beautiful as a mahjong tile and a perfect partner to eggnog and warm milky tea. —Amanda Hesser
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Ingredients
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2
eggs
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1/4
teaspoon salt
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1
cup sugar
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2
cups sifted all-purpose flour
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2
teaspoons crushed anise seed or fennel seed
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1
teaspoon grated lemon zest
Directions
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Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or by using good ol’ elbow grease, beat the eggs and salt until light and foamy. Gradually beat in the sugar (I do about 1/4 cup at a time) until thick and cream-colored. Be patient—this takes a while.
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Add the remaining ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon just until a dough forms. Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface. Knead it lightly for less than a minute, then pat into a rectangle 1/4-inch thick and just a little narrower than the springerle rolling pin (if you don’t have a springerle rolling pin, read on, I’ll get to this), sprinkling flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to the work surface. If you have a springerle rolling pin, roll it over the dough, firm enough to make in impression but not so firm as to flatten the dough. Cut into individual cookies, following the pattern. Transfer to the parchment lined baking sheets and let stand overnight. (If you don’t have the rolling pin, roll the dough a smidgen thinner and simply cut into 2-inch by 1 1/2-inch cookies.) Let the cookies sit out overnight, unbaked.
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The next day, heat the oven to 325° F. Bake the springerles for 20 minutes, rotating the pans back to front halfway through baking. Do not let the springerles color. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets. Store in an airtight container.
Before starting Food52 with Merrill, I was a food writer and editor at the New York Times. I've written several books, including "Cooking for Mr. Latte" and "The Essential New York Times Cookbook." I played myself in "Julie & Julia" -- hope you didn't blink, or you may have missed the scene! I live in Brooklyn with my husband, Tad, and twins, Walker and Addison.
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