The smell of sweet spices emulating from the kitchen reminds me of Christmases long ago baking gingerbread cookies with my mum. This year I am doing the same with my kids but this time with spelt gingerbread cookies. These are lightly spiced with ginger and cinnamon but you can make them as spicy as you like. The best thing about this recipe is the spelt gingerbread cookies taste like the best gingerbread cookie you’ve ever tasted and they retain their crunch for days afterwards so you can ice them ready to hang on the Christmas tree.
This recipe can also be used if you want to bake a gingerbread house with your kids, especially if you feel inspired after reading Hansel and Gretel before bedtime! You can substitute the spelt flour with plain flour if you prefer as the recipe works well with both. We don’t use pure sugar in our house so I will share my recipe with you for sugar-free royal icing as well as sugar royal icing . It works a treat and the kids don’t even notice! It whips like a dream and is very easy to ice the cookies with too.
Christmas Spices
The main spice I use is ginger which goes without saying but I also use cinnamon, nutmeg and a hint of ground cloves. This just adds that bit of difference to the flavour of the cookie so that the ginger doesn’t take over. The reason the cookie stays crunchy for longer is I melt the honey and molasses together so that it all combines to make a smooth dough.
No Refined Sugars
The best thing about these cookies is they are made with honey and molasses as a sweetener so at least you know they are natural with no refined sugars required. And the kids will be begging you for more!
Make It
Following the recipe for spelt gingerbread cookies is simple and it can be made by hand or in a thermomix or similar blender. Once the cookie dough is made, cut with the Christmas cutters of your choice. To make a hole in the top of the cookie I use a number 5 tip as it cuts a perfect circle. Bake in a preheated oven at 170˚C for 8-10 minutes or until lightly cooked. I like mine pale and not too brown. They seems soft when straight out of the oven but they turn crisp on cooling.
The Icing on The Cake
By all means you may use royal icing but here I make my own using xylitol. Place in a piping bag with a number 3 tip and decorate! Start simply at first and then your creativity will soon take over! Leave the cookies to dry. I find the drying speeds up in an oven on the defrost button setting at 0˚C (no heat). Then leave them in a tin until ready to hang or arrange on a nice serving dish.
The best part for the kids is hanging them on the tree. But watch them silently disappear! Merry Christmas to you all.
These are delicious with Spiced Hot Chocolate or my recipe for Warm Spiced Apple Drink to give you that Christmas feeling!
[penci_recipe]
130ml honey
150ml molasses or black treacle
100g coconut sugar
200g butter
530g spelt flour or plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch of ground cloves
For the icing:
250g xylitol or icing sugar
10g egg white powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
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