Swedish Christmas Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream together butter and 3/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy.
• Beat in egg yolks and almond extract.
• Add salt. Sift in 2-1/2 cups flour. Mix. Add just enough additional flour to make a pliable dough. (Or see variation in description above.) Chill for 30 minutes.
• To shape, divide dough into 6 equal portions. Roll out each to make a rope about 24 inches long.
• Cut dough into 2-inch strips. Place on cookie sheets. Brush with egg white. Sprinkle with almonds and remaining sugar.
• Bake at 375 degrees for about 10 minutes until cookies feel firm and are lightly browned around the edges. Let cool on cookie sheets for a few minutes. Remove to wire rack and cool completely.

Steps:

• Whisk the flour, cardamom, and salt in a bowl.
• Put the butter and confectioners' sugar in a food processor, and process until smooth.
• Pulse in the egg, vanilla, and lemon zest until combined. Add the flour mixture and process to make a soft buttery dough.
• Divide dough in half onto 2 (12-inch long) sheets of plastic wrap, using the plastic, shape into rough logs.
• Refrigerate the dough logs for 30 minutes until just firm enough to shape into uniform logs, 8-inches long by 2-inches in diameter. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
• Scatter either the sanding sugars or toasted nuts on a work surface and roll the logs until completely coated.
• Cut into 1/4-inch thick cookies and space about 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.
• Bake until golden around the edges, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool cookies on the pan on wire racks. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Steps:

• Whisk the flour, cardamom, and salt in a bowl.
• Put the butter and confectioners' sugar in a food processor, and process until smooth. Pulse in the egg, vanilla, and lemon zest until combined. Add the flour mixture and process to make a soft buttery dough. Divide the dough in half onto 2 (12-inch long) sheets of plastic wrap. Using the plastic, shape into rough logs. Refrigerate the dough logs for 30 minutes until just firm enough to shape into uniform logs, 8-inches long by 2-inches in diameter. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
• Scatter either the sanding sugars or toasted nuts on a work surface and roll the logs until completely coated. Cut into 1/4-inch thick cookies and space about 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until golden around the edges, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool cookies on the pan on wire racks. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300°. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add syrup. Combine flour and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. , Divide dough into eight portions. Roll each portion into a 9-in. log. Place 3 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cut into 1-in. slices. Remove to wire racks. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, and salt.
• In a small saucepan over moderate heat, warm the corn syrup and orange zest. Add the butter and sugar and continue warming, stirring occasionally, until melted. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Add the egg and whisk to combine. Pour over the flour mixture and stir to combine. Form the dough into a ball, wrap in a double layer of plastic wrap, and chill overnight.
• Arrange racks in the upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat to 375°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with nonstick baking mats, such as Silpats, or parchment paper.
• Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out a portion of the dough on a lightly floured surface to a 1/4 inch thickness. Using cookie cutters, cut the dough into desired shapes, such as circles, stars, hearts, bells, gingerbread men, and Christmas trees. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets and sprinkle with the pearl sugar. Bake, switching the cookies between the upper and lower racks and rotating the baking sheets about halfway through baking, until the edges are just beginning to brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Watch the cookies carefully to make sure they don't get too brown.
• Let the cookies cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to let cool completely. Continue rolling and cutting out the rest of the cookie dough and baking the cookies on cooled baking sheets. DO AHEAD: Pepparkakor can be baked ahead and kept, stored between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container, for up to 2 weeks, or frozen up to 1 month.