Many countries of the world can boast of their unique dishes that are served on holidays, and how to prepare them. One of these is the Platzchen German Christmas cookie recipe. Surprisingly, by this name the inhabitants of Germany mean any such delicacy that is baked directly on December 24, that is, the day before Christmas. But be that as it may, this dish is incredibly tasty and looks very attractive, since in the pastry shops it is decorated with white icing and strips of high-quality chocolate.
This article will talk about how you can cook German Christmas cookies on your own, with minimal effort.
Differences of German confectionery
In German cuisine you can find many unique recipes for a variety of pastries. There are biscuit rolls, gingerbread cookies and cakes. But special attention deserves cookies, which are prepared exclusively before the biggest holidays.
The recipe below will be classic, as it contains a traditional combination of flavors. In fact, the resulting baking will be the basis for the manifestation of your culinary fantasies. However, if you wish, you can be distinguished by originality already during the preparation of the test. For example, by reducing the amount of sugar and adding coarse salt and various spices, you can get cookies that are ideal as a snack for beer. Ground cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger will be especially good here.
Features of Baking
As mentioned earlier, German cookies for Christmas are not so much an original recipe as a whole concept. In Germany, it is customary to exhibit a Christmas plate for this holiday, on which several kinds of various cookies can be found. It is only important that it is baked the day before and is distinguished by freshness.
But the most important thing to remember during cooking is that products should never look the same. Cookies must be completely different from each other. They can be given an inconceivable form or even cooked according to a variety of recipes. Well, if you can’t do this, then all the effort needs to be put into the decoration.
Ingredients
Despite the big name, the recipe for German cookies for Christmas is pretty simple. For him, you don’t even need to go additionally to the store, since the basic ingredients will always be at home. So, for cooking you need to take:
- 300 grams of premium wheat flour;
- 150 grams of butter;
- 100 grams of sugar;
- 1 chicken egg;
- 1.5 teaspoons of vanilla sugar;
- 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
If desired, for the preparation of German cookies, you can also use various flavors: rum, cognac, liqueurs. They will give baking additional notes in taste and aroma.
Step cooking
During the preparation of this dish, you must very carefully follow the recipe. For German cookies, it is quite classic and uncomplicated, so it will not cause any trouble even for a novice hostess. So to get tasty products you need to follow this instruction:
- In a deep bowl, you will need to pour out all the dry ingredients that were given above. The first thing that goes here is pre-sifted flour, both types of sugar and baking powder.
- Next, softened butter is added, which is cut into small pieces. Using a mixer, the mass can easily be turned into a rather small crumb.
- Then the egg and flavor are introduced (if you decide to add it). The resulting dough is kneaded, and then collected in a tight ball. It will need to be wrapped in cling film and sent to the refrigerator for about a couple of hours to relax.
Shaping
The next step in the preparation of German cookies is to directly shape the dough. To do this, you need to get it out of the refrigerator and let it lie down a little at room temperature so that it is easier to handle.
You can roll out the dough directly on the table using a rolling pin. If it turned out to be of high enough quality, then it will not stick to the table. However, if the desired consistency was not achieved, it is better to sprinkle the workplace with a small amount of flour.
It is recommended to roll out the dough with a thickness of about half a centimeter. But here you can already be guided by your own preferences. If you like dry baking more, then you can make the thickness less. Then, Christmas-themed cookie cutters are used to cut out future German cookies.
Baking
The resulting cookie blanks must be transferred to a baking sheet covered with baking paper. You can stack them side by side, since it will not spread to the sides during baking.
This sweet is being prepared at a temperature of 180 degrees, so you must first thoroughly preheat the oven. Care must be taken to ensure that German cookies are not burnt. It will take no more than 10 minutes to cook. Just make sure it becomes a little ruddy, and then take it out. Once the cookie has cooled, you can start decorating it.
Cookie decoration
During the decoration of this cookie, it is allowed to fully show their creative abilities, since any products are suitable for this, and you can vary them depending on your own desire. Marzipans, pistachios, candied fruits, candied cherries and even cherry jellies often appear as decor. You can also use store sprinkles if you wish.
But the icing is best done the simplest: it should consist only of powdered sugar and egg whites. So she will not delay the taste of the cookies themselves.
To prepare the glaze, you need to take 2 protein and about 200 grams of powdered sugar. All this will need to be whipped together, and then dip each cookie into the resulting mixture. Immediately after applying the glaze, before it has time to dry and harden, you need to start decorating the baked goods.
Conclusion
In Russia, the Christmas holidays do not fall on December 25, as in the Catholic countries, but on January 7. However, this does not mean that you can not treat yourself to delicious German cookies at any time. As you can see, cooking it is very simple. And the ingredients are quite easy to find, since the grocery set is standard and straightforward.
Although at first glance such cookies do not seem original, the best thing about them is that they can be cooked together with children. Just give them the opportunity to show their creativity and decorate pastries on their own. They will definitely remain impressed and quickly eat up to the last crumb.