Pfeffernusse Martha Stewart Food

TRADITIONAL PFEFFERNUESSE

Steps:

• Combine butter, sugar, brown sugar, and molasses in bowl; beat at medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally, until creamy.
• Combine water and coffee granules in another bowl; stir until dissolved. Add coffee mixture and all remaining ingredients except flour; continue beating until well mixed. Add flour; beat at low speed until well mixed. Cover; refrigerate at least 30 minutes until firm.
• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Divide dough into 10 portions (about 1/4 cup dough each). Roll 1 portion at a time into 18x1/2-inch rope on lightly floured surface. Cut each rope into 1/2-inch pieces with sharp knife. Place pieces 1/2 inch apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8-9 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and cookies are set.
• Place waxed paper on top of cooling racks. Loosen cookies with spatula; spread onto waxed paper. Roll warm cookies in powdered sugar or sugar, if desired.

GERMAN SPICE COOKIES (PFEFFERNUSSE)

Steps:

• Cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and spices. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter, brown sugar, and molasses on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture; beat until just combined. Pinch off a heaping teaspoon of dough, roll into a ball, and place on a prepared baking sheet. Repeat process with remaining dough, spacing balls 1 1/2 inches apart. (Dough can be frozen at this point, covered tightly with plastic wrap, up to 1 month.)
• Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until cookies are golden and firm to the touch with slight cracking, about 15 minutes. Transfer sheets to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Glaze: Fit a rimmed baking sheet with a wire rack. In a medium bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar, milk, and kirsch, if desired. Using a fork, dip each cookie in glaze to coat. Tap to remove excess glaze and place on wire rack to dry. Repeat with remaining cookies.
• To decorate: While the glaze is still wet, top cookies with a small pinch of peppercorns, if desired. Alternatively, let glaze dry completely before mixing together luster dust and kirsch with a small paintbrush. Lightly brush tops of cookies with luster dust mixture, if desired. Let dry before serving. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 weeks.

PFEFFERNUSSE (GERMAN PEPPER NUT COOKIES )

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, salt, pepper, aniseeds, cinnamon, baking soda, allspice, nutmeg and cloves.
• In a large bowl, using an electic mixer set on medium speed, beat together the butter, brown sugar and molasses until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
• Beat in the egg.
• Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour mixture.
• Cover and refrigerate for several hours.
• Position a rack in the middle of an oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
• Butter 2 baking sheets, scoop up pieces of dough and roll between your palms into balls 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
• Place the balls on the cookie sheets spacing them about 2 inches apart.
• Bake until the cookies are golden brown on the bottom and firm to the touch, about 14 minutes.
• Transfer the baking sheets to racks and let the cookies cool slightly on the sheets.
• Place the confectioners' sugar in a sturdy paper bag, drop a few cookies into the bag, close the top securely, and shake gently to coat the warm cookies with the sugar.
• Transfer to racks and let cool completely.
• Repeat with the remaining cookies.
• Store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

PFEFFERNUSSE III

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Sift together flour, baking powder, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir in the orange rind and nuts.
• In a medium size bowl, beat eggs and sugar until thick. Blend in flour mixture to make a smooth dough.
• Roll dough into 1 inch balls, place onto ungreased baking sheets and bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, until light brown.