Re: St Nicholas Day goodies

On Tue 02 Dec 2008 06:06:43p, Arri London told us...



Wayne Boatwright wrote:

On Mon 01 Dec 2008 05:52:33p, Arri London told us...



Kathleen wrote:

Arri London wrote:

The sixth of December is St Nicholas Day and is a fun holiday in
the Netherlands. Sinterklaas arrives by boat from Spain (nice
place for a holiday of course) with his assistant Zwarte Piet
(Black Peter).

St. Nicholas Day! I haven't thought of that in ages!

When I was a kid we celebrated St. Nicholas' Day. My mom, of
German/Polish descent, would have us hang up socks - not stockings,
mind you, actual socks - on the door handles of our bedrooms. In
the morning we'd find them filled with weird treats. Peppermints,
gingerbread cookies, filberts and pecans, candy kisses, some times a
little toy or two.

Gee, talk about a blast from the past...

LOL! Glad to help. The only thing missing are the chocolate letters
that are part of the feastings.

Saw chocolate 'coal' in addition to the usual liquorice 'coal' in the
market. Should buy some to give the Maternal Unit.

Another treat are the 'pepernoten' or 'pfeffernusse'; gingered spice
biscuits/cookies covered in icing sugar or a smooth glaze. Might make
some of those this year too.


I love pfeffernusse as well as springerle, and haven?t made either in
several years. Maybe I?ll get to make some this year. They are really
my two favorite Christmas cookies. I prefer the pfeffernusse covered
in icing sugar better than with a glaze.

--


We also prefer the icing sugar over the glaze but lately all the German
ones we've bought come glazed. Presumably easier to ship.

Better make the pfeffernusse this weekend...they need to age a bit prior
to consumption. Still trying to make 'printen' (another sort of spice
biscuit/cookie) but last year didn't have success with the particular
recipe selected :( Will try another this year. They too need to age a
bit.


Yes, you?re right. Both these cookies need to age and ?ripen? a bit before
eating. You can speed that along some by covering the top layer of cookies
in the container with plastic wrap and laying slices of apples on top, then
tightly seal the container.

Are you taking about Aachener Printen? This is the recipe I have used in
the past.

500 grams dark corn syrup
3 tablespoons water
10 grams potash***
1 tablespoon rum
150 grams rock candy
100 grams sugar
60 grams candied orange peel
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons aniseed, ground
2 teaspoons coriander, ground
1 pinch cloves, ground
600 grams flour
Some dark syrup and water

In a saucepan over medium heat, stir together syrup and water until hot.
Remove from heat and cool slightly. Dissolve the potash in the rum. Break
the rock candy into very small pieces. Add all of the ingredients to a
large mixing bowl and knead until dough forms. Wrap in plastic wrap and let
dough rest for 5 days in a cool place. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease baking
sheets. On a lightly floured board, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thick and
cut out 1-inch by 2-inch rectangles. Place cookies on prepared baking
sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake 15 minutes. Allow to cool for one minute
on baking *** and then remove to wire racks to cool completely. Glaze the
cookies with a mixture of one part syrup to one part water. When dry, store
in tins at room temperature.

***Potash is potassium carbonate, a chemical leavening which helps baked
goods stay moist. It tastes really bad by itself, but when it's baked into
cookies the taste goes away. You can buy it in little packets in German
stores. If you can't get any, substitute baking soda.


--
Wayne Boatwright
(correct the spelling of "geemail" to reply)
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Date: Tuesday, 12(XII)/02(II)/08(MMVIII)
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Countdown till Christmas Day
3wks 1dys 6hrs 4mins
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I used to be self-actualized, now I'm just confused.
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