Peppernotter (Scandinavian Christmas Cookies) Recipe

Peppernotter (Scandinavian Christmas Cookies) Recipe

  • 3 eggs
  • 3/4 cup white sugar
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 2/3 cup finely chopped almonds (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 2 teaspoons water
  1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease several baking sheets.
  2. Beat the eggs, white sugar, and brown sugar in a bowl until the sugar has dissolved, then beat in lemon juice, almonds, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper, allspice, and cloves until thoroughly combined. Mix in flour to make a sticky dough.
  3. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured work surface, and knead the dough 1 to 2 minutes, adding more flour if needed, to make a smooth, workable dough. Pinch off pieces of dough and roll them into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, and place the balls on the prepared baking sheets at least 1 inch apart.
  4. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cookie comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove from sheets immediately to cooling racks to prevent cookies from getting too hard.
  5. Stir together confectioners' sugar and water to make a glaze, and drizzle each cookie while slightly warm with about 1/2 teaspoon, spreading it around the top of the cookie.