I received this recipe when I lived in Germany. I fell in love with lebkuchen and although this isn't your traditional baked German treat, it definitely hits the spot baked at home. Plus, those that have issues with gluten can also indulge in these as there isn't any flour involved. This recipe also makes a smaller batch than many cookies. Lebkuchen is traditionally sold during the Christmas season and then those shops which had it are turned into other things (like ice cream shops for the summer season). There are as many different kinds of lebkuchen as you can possibly think up, so feel free to change things up to satisfy your cravings for other flavors. If you live close to a German market you can buy oblaten which are little edible discs you can eat and makes the lebkuchen a lot easier to get off the pan. If you don't have them I would recommend baking on parchment paper or a silicon mat as they can get quite sticky without something under then to release them for eating.
Elisenlebkuchen
3 eggs
1 cup sugar (200g)
1 package vanilla sugar (or 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
1-2 pinches of cloves
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon rum flavoring
2 -5 drops lemon extract
1/3 cup candy glazed citron (you can use lemon or orange if you can't find citron)
2/3 cup ground almonds
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2/3 cup ground hazelnuts
8-10 oblaten
Preheat the oven to 375F. Beat the eggs and then add sugar and vanilla sugar (if using). Mix together until it is light and creamy. Add the cloves, rum flavoring, and lemon extract and mix. Then add the candy glazed citron, almonds, and backing powder and mix again. Then add the hazelnuts, mix and then the dough to settle so it is easy to spread. Check the consistency and add a little more ground hazelnuts if it spreads too easily. Put the dough on the oblaten discs and back for 10 minutes. Let cool and then decorate with chocolate and whole almonds if desired.
I have a hard time going out for breakfast. Many might ask why, but the answer is simple. I like to stay at home and eat good food. Breakfast is one of those meals which is very easy to make as long as you keep certain staples on hand. My staples include buttermilk, flour, sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, butter, and eggs. If you have these things there are endless things you can make with them. This one I found in the Penzey's magazine. Penzey's, for those of you who are unfamiliar with them, is a wonderful spice shop. They used to be walking distance from my apartment in St. Paul. I used to go there to buy even just one spice if I ran out because it just smelled so good. Once I moved to Colorado and they appeared in my city, I was happy to go there. Plus, they kept giving out spices when I would get their catalog, so how could I say no to be able to try even more good things?
This pancake recipe is in their most recent catalog catalog. It is called German pancakes, but in a way I disagree with the name as I didn't see a pancake such as this when I lived in Germany. However, this does remind me of the Scandinavian pancakes which puff. I don't really like baked or cooked apples and this pancake is one which they don't bother me. Extra bonus it is really easy to make. The longest part was cutting the apple to put in the pancake.
Apple Pancakes
2 eggs
3/8 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons vanilla sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoon butter
1 medium granny smith apple, thinly sliced
Preheat oven to 400F while you prepare the pancake. Place a 9 inch pie plate into the oven to heat. Beat eggs, flour, milk and salt. Remove the pie plate from the oven and place 1 tablespoon of butter into it to melt. Spread apple slices into the bottom of the pie plate. Pour in the batter. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 400F for 20-25 minutes until the pancake is golden brown and puffy. Serve immediately.
Serves two, but can be doubled if more if desired.
When I was young my grandma would bake every Saturday. Fortunately, since I live just up the block, I was able to "help" her bake often. She would bake beautiful dinner rolls and these wonderful beautiful tasting cinnamon rolls. While I love those rolls, I don't always want to start my morning with the whole process in order to several hours later eat those wonderful rolls. So when I saw this recipe which is very quick to throw together because of the nature of the biscuit dough instead of the traditional bread dough, I thought I had to try it. Plus, as there are only four of them it is just the right size for my husband and I to eat and not watch the rest of them go stale.
Gooey Cinnamon Biscuits
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups heaving whipping cream
2 tablespoons cinnamon
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Heat oven to 425 F. Grease and line with parchment paper and 8 inch by 8 inch pan. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Pour 1 1/2 cups of the whipping cream into the dry mixture and mix until just combined. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Pat into a rectangle. Slice into 8 squares and lay half of them into the prepared pan. Sprinkle cinnamon over the squares (add a little sugar if desired but really more sugar is not needed). Cover each square with a second square and press together to seal. Top with additional cinnamon (or cinnamon and sugar mixture). Bake for about 15 minutes until golden brown. Whisk together remaining 1/2 cup cream, powdered sugar and vanilla. Drizzle with glaze once biscuits have been removed from the oven. Serves about 4.
