Thursday, November 11, 2010

Schneeflöckchen/Snowflake Cookies

Schneefloeckchen


So, you're scrolling through the blogroll and you catch a glimpse of these photos and you're thinking 'What the heck? Those don't look like snowflakes at all! It's a scam!', huh? You're absolutely right! Schneeflöckchen, as we call them here in Germany, are little pale cookies that may not resemble snowflakes in their looks, but they certainly behave like snowflakes! Don't get me wrong, they won't fall from the sky (although you're free to give them a little 'help', but I'm not cleaning up, ok?), but these cookies will melt on your tongue like nothing else. They are the most delicate cookies I've come across in my life, even more so than shortbread thanks to the cornstarch and a good deal of margarine. Give them a try this upcoming christmas season and let me know what you think. :)


Schneefloeckchen


Ingredients
1/2 cup pastry flour
1 1/4 cups cornstarch
1/2 cup + 1 tbs powdered sugar
3/4 cup vegan margarine, room temperature
1 tbs vanilla sugar (or 1/4 tsp extract)

1) Combine sugar, vanilla and margarine to a slightly fluffy paste.
2) Sift in flour and cornstarch and and knead to a smooth dough.
3) Wrap the dough in tinfoil and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
4) Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Lightly grease a baking sheet or place a sheet of baking paper on it.
5) Take the dough out, unwrap and use approximately 1 tbs of dough to form a small ball, place on baking sheet and continue with the rest of dough until you've filled the baking sheet. These cookies will spread a little when they bake, so leave some room in between cookies.
6) Use a fork to flatten the cookies, this will create a pattern that is characteristic for snowflake cookies.
7) Bake for approximately 15 minutes. Make sure they don't brown, they're not supposed to be golden and crispy.
8) Let cool and store in an airtight container in a cool place.
Done!


Schneefloeckchen



11 comments:

  1. I must have been living under a rock, Ich hab noch nie von diesen Keksen gehört. Anyway, they look really great and remind me of Heidesand cookies.

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  2. I have never seen them before either, I guess I should give them a try, as you compare them to shortbread and I definitely love that.

    By the way: Today I went to my Asian shop and asked whether they had that javanese palm sugar and the woman there told me "we do not use this in Asian dishes".. umm... I have a slight idea about her not representing whole Asia. But I keep my eyes open!

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  3. Oh goodness. Bookmarked. Those look great.

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  4. I read the title and thought "they don't look like snowflakes" then I read the post! Aah! It all makes sense now! :)

    I'm going to have to try these, they sound delicious and look beautiful!

    (And it's a good job you have word verification on your comments too, as my cat just tried to send you a message! Doh!).

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  5. Sounds delicious! I love cookies that melt in your mouth!

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  6. Oh yum those look delicious - I'm bookmarking your recipe. I love your snowflake description too!

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  7. @SeitanIsMyMotor: It's been a while since I had a heidesand cookie, but from what I remember they have a lot more bite to them than these. I'm so surprised you and Tisi never heard of them before!

    @Tisi: That's hilarious, gave me a good chuckle! If you can't find palm sugar that's specifically marked as 'javanese' or 'gula jawa/gula merah' just ask for palm sugar and pick the darkest they have, it shouldn't make much of a difference so don't stress over it. :)

    @NotARabbit: I'm not good with the cat lingo, but tell her she's got great taste!

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  8. I guess these cookies are not very common in southern Germany. I asked a friend of mine (because my mother used to make 3 kinds of cookies for christmas and hers abot 40) and she does not know them either. Over here we are more used to have Vanillekipferl, Spitzbuam, Makronen and Spritzgebäck for christmas. But I see, there should be more cultural exchange concerning food!

    I told my mother to visit another Asian grocery store for me (as she is not living at the end of the world) and I guess they'll have it.

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  9. Candice - Thank you so much for the feed back! I am glad you like them. I will have to try your idea with the sprinkles next time. :)

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  10. Cookie Lover I wonder what the yield is?

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  11. about how big do you roll them? one inch?

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