Basler Leckerli Swiss Christmas Cookie Bars Food

SWISS BASLER LECKERLI (BASEL COOKIES)

Steps:

• Put honey, sugar, cinnamon, clove powder and nut meg in a pan, heat up slowly, then remove from stove.
• Add candied orange peel, candied lemon peel, almonds and grind skin of lemon, stir until mixed evenly.
• Add kirsch, flour and baking powder, knead on a table to form a soft dough.
• While the dough is still warm, roll it out on the back of a greased baking sheet approximately 5 mm (0.2 inches) thick.
• Let it rest for about 5 to 6 hours or over night in a dry place.
• Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes in the center of the pre-heated oven at 430°F(220°C).
• Mix confectioner's sugar and kirsch or water, frost dough immediately.
• Cut off stale edges.
• Cut dough in small pieces (5 x 3 cm, 2 x 1.5 inches), take them off the baking sheets and let them cool.

BASLER LECKERLI (SWISS SPICED HARD BARS)

Steps:

• Melt honey very slowly in a pan, add almonds, sugar and swirl until the sugar is melted too.
• Let cool slightly.
• Add all other ingredients until the Kirsch and mix well.
• Add the flour and eventually the baking soda and work to a compact dough.
• Roll the dough out on two greased baking sheets approximately 5 mm thick.
• Store overnight.
• Preheat the oven at 180°C (heat and timing are basing it on convection oven).
• Prepare the glaze heating in a pot water and sugar until boiling point. Reduce the heat but let it boil slowly.
• Bake 15-20 minutes at 180°C (I need 18 minutes).
• In the meanwhile the glaze should be ready. It takes about 15 to 20 Minutes until it thickens, it's bound and crystals appear.
• Remove from the heat but keep on a slightly warm plate.
• When the dough is baked, remove pans to a rack and immediately cut in rectangles (but don't separate them completely) brush the tops with glaze.
• When cooled dived the rectangles and store in airtight containers.
• Note: you can built a gingerbread house with this dough! I used 3 fold quantities for the gingerbread house of the picture!

LECKERLI

Steps:

• Combine honey and sugar in a small saucepan. Heat slowly, stirring constantly, until honey thins and sugar dissolves; cool slightly.
• Sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves into a large bowl.
• Add almonds, candied orange and lemon peels; mix to coat.
• Add cooled honey mixture, egg and kirsch to flour mixture; stir with wooden spoon until blended.
• Knead dough together with palm of hand until mixture cleans side of bowl; shape into ball; flatten slightly.
• Roll dough between two sheets of wax paper to a 13x9 inch rectangle, slightly less than 1/4 inch thich, keeping edges as even as possible.
• Remove top piece of wax paper; flip dough onto lightly greased cookie sheet; remove second piece of wax paper.
• Brush top lightly with milk.
• Bake in a moderate over (375 degrees F) for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
• Remove cookie sheet to wire rack.
• Trim edges of cookie dough; cut into 2-inch squares.
• Make GLAZE: Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 3 Tbsp water in saucepan. Cook about 5 minutes or until it registers 235 degrees F on candy thermometer.
• Brush Glaze quickly over warm Leckerli. (Do not make glaze until Leckerli are out of the oven or it will harden.)
• Decorate with candied red cherry halves and angelica leaves. (Glaze will harden and turn white.).

SWISS BASLER LECKERLI WITH KIRSCH

Steps:

• Pour honey into a large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat.
• Add Kirsch. Stir in sugar. Return to medium heat. Stir in everything else except flour and glaze ingredients. Remove from heat.
• Stir in the flour graadually until the dough cleans the side of the pan. This should take about 15 minutes. If the dough is still sticky, add more flour, a little at a time.
• Roll out to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut into 2 x 3-inch bars. Place them closely together on a heavily greased and floured baking sheet. Let stand overnight at room temperature.
• Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. While hot, brush with confectioners glaze.
• To make glaze: beat together for 20 minutes. If more glaze is needed, make up several batches rather than doubling the recipe.
• NOTE: These need to ripen before eating. Pack in airtight containers and keep, if possible, for 3- 4 weeks. Stored this way, this will keep almost indefinitely.

BASELER LECKERLI (SWISS SPICE COOKIES)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
• Sift together the flour, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, nutmeg and baking soda.
• Combine honey, sugar and water in a small saucepan.
• Place over low heat until the honey just melts- do not let it boil.
• Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the dough hook.
• Let cool slightly.
• Add the sifted flour mixture, the almonds, orange peel and lemon zest.
• Blend until the mixture comes together in a heavy, sticky dough, adding a spoonful or two of water if needed.
• (The mixing can be done by hand, but it's labor intensive) Resist the urge to add more water to make the dough easier to handle; it would impair the texture of the finished cookies.
• Spread the dough about 1/2 to 1 inch thick on the baking sheets, forming 3 rectangles, each about 8 x 9 inches.
• Bake for about 20 minutes, until the tops turn a medium brown.
• When the dough rectangles have baked, remove pans to a rack and immediately brush the tops with glaze.
• Let cool for 10 minutes.
• Cut into 1 x 3-inch bars or into diamond shapes.
• Transfer to racks to cool completely.
• Ice with a simple sugar glaze.
• Store in airtight containers, placing wax paper between layers.
• Let rest at least 1 week, preferably longer.

BASLER LACKERLI (SWISS SPICED HONEY COOKIES)

Steps:

• Preheat over to 325 degrees. Line bottom and sides of a buttered jelly-roll pan, 10 1/2 x 15 1/2 x 1-inch, with foil and butter foil.
• Make dough:.
• Chop almonds very fine but not ground, preferably in a food processor. In a bowl whisk together flour, spices, baking powder, and baking soda. In a large heavy saucepan heat honey and granulated sugar over moderately low heat, stirring, just until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and stir in kirsch, orange peel, and almonds. Stir in flour mixture and cool dough 5 minutes.
• With floured hands, press dough evenly into pan. Put dough in oven and immediately reduce temperature to 300 degrees F. Bake dough 25 - 30 mins, or until firm but not dry and hard, and cool in pan on a rack. Invert baked dough onto a cutting board. Discard foil and invert baked dough.
• Make glaze:.
• Ina small saucepan heat water with grandulated sugar over moderately low heat, stirring, just until sugar is dissolved. Sift in confectioners' sugar and stir until comined well.
• Pour hot glaze on baked dough and brush evenly over dough, brushing continuously until glaze crystallizes and whitens. Let glazed dough stand 10 minutes Trim off and discard edges of dough and cut into 2 x 1 1/2-inch rectangles. Keep cookies in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.