Speculoos Spice Cookies are based on a classic Belgian recipe that makes perfect cut out cookies ~ these pretty snowflakes will be the stars of your holiday cookie assortment!
Everybody’s got their favorite cookie cutters, and chances are they only see the light of day at this time of year. If I’m going to bother rolling and cutting cookies, then I want it to be fun, and I’m partial to pretty snowflakes.
Speculoos are a traditional holiday spice cookie in Belgium and the Netherlands. This dough is a little more interesting than plain sugar cookies, and yet not as overwhelmingly spiced and peppery as gingerbread can sometimes be. It smells like the holidays and makes a nice all purpose cookie dough.
Some years I use these cutters with salt dough and make tree ornaments to give away. This year it’s strictly edible.
Use any cutter you like. The dough rolls out easily and reforms and re-rolls easily as well, so there’s little waste.
I just used a plain white royal icing to glaze these cookies. The frosting dries hard, so you can stack them for giving.
Not quite Martha Stewart, but then again they won’t make you pull out your hair…which is worth something.
If you love to cut out holiday cookies, see my HOLIDAY SUGAR COOKIES AND DIY COLORED SUGAR post for more inspiration. I’ll show you how to make your own colored sugars in a rainbow of shades you won’t find at the grocery store!
Speculoos Spice Cookies
Ingredients
cookies
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 2 1/4 cups all-purposed flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/3 sticks unsalted butter, softened at room temperature (about 11 tablespoons)
royal icing
- 2 egg whites, or you can use dried egg whites mixed with water according to the package
- 2-3 cups confectioner's sugar, add it in slowly, just enough so you get a spreadable consistency, add more sugar for a stiffer icing
- decorations if desired
Instructions
- Set oven to 350F
- Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Beat in the egg. Add in the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Turn the dough out onto a board and bring together into one piece, if it's crumbly, knead it a bit. Cut the dough in 2 and form flat discs, as if for pie dough. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- Roll out the dough to your desired thickness and cut your cookies. If you spray the inside of your cutters with cooking spray, they will release the dough easier. Place the cut out cookies on a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake the cookies for about 10 minutes, depending on thickness, and cool on a rack. They won't brown, and will firm up as they cool.
- Frost with royal icing and add decorative sugars, etc., if you want to.
- To make the frosting, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Add in the sugar, and beat well, until you get stiff peaks.
- Transfer to a baggie with the edge clipped, or a pastry bag. Or, you can just spoon the icing down over the cookies for total coverage like I did. If the icing seems too thick, thin with a little warm water. Add in food coloring if you like.
Make it your own ~
- Don’t hesitate to add sprinkles or colored sugar to the wet icing for a colorful festive touch.
- Before baking the cookies use a toothpick or a straw to create small holes at the top to thread with string or wire for hanging as ornaments.
- Add gel food coloring to tint the royal icing any color you’d like.
Don’t forget to pin these Speculoos Spice Cookies!
Hi, Sue! These cookies sound amazing, except I’m not really a fan of ginger. Can I substitute something else or should I just leave it out? Thanks!
You can absolutely leave it out, and customize the spice blend however you like.
Sue
Is the frosting supposed to be hard? Mine is not as smooth looking as yours and doesn’t seem to want to harden.
Yes, it should harden as it dries, Arlene. It’s possible yours needed more sugar? That should help it harden faster.
My daughter and I chose these cookies for her 4-H cookie exchanged WE love them. We did add a slight lemon flavor to the frosting but very mild. So much fun!! I wish I could post a pic!!
I would love to see a photo, you can always tag me on instagram, or facebook Angela! I’m a lemon-a-holic so I know I’d love your lemon version.
Hi Sue,
I was wondering where you got the little v-shaped cutter that you used to cut out the inside of the snowflake cookie pictured on the speculoos cookie recipe. I would love to purchase one for my snowflake cutter, which is the same shape as yours.
I am going to add your speculoos cookie to my Christmas cookie gifts this year…can’t wait to try them!
Thanks for this awesome blog, It’s become my go to site when I need something special for dessert or dinner.
Cheers,
Nancy ??
That came with the cookie cutter set, Nancy, and I think they sell it at Williams Sonoma…I’ll track it down and come back and link it for you.
Ok, I did on facebook under my henna page!!!
You can buy these little cutters at Michaels or Hobby Lobby. They are used for clay. Just make sure you only use them for food.
I just made these. They did not seem to have enough moisture. Were very crumbly. Any tips?
Hi Sarah ~ there are a few things I can think of…make sure the butter you use is truly soft, so it can blend with the flour. And make sure you measure the flour carefully. I fluff the flour, then scoop it and level it. This dough might need some extra mixing to incorporate the butter and egg into the flour. And finally, you can feel free to add a drop or two of water to a very dry dough. It’s always hard to be exact because different butters can have different moisture levels, and everybody measures a little differently. Even measuring cups can vary quite a bit!
Does anyone know about how many cookies this recipe makes? I know it can depend on the cutter, but some sort of guesstimate.
Anise oil has a slight licorice taste.
Couple of questions about the recipe! Never says when to add the 1 egg. I added after creaming butter and sugar. Also when I first read it, I thought it was 1 stick and 1/3 cup of butter. Which is what I put in – they came out great and I don’t think I’ll play with that, but when going to make another batch now I read it as 1 and 1/3 sticks of butter. Could you just clarify the measurement of butter in cups/tablespoons? Thanks!
Thanks Irene, I just updated the recipe. As for the butter it would be approximately 11 tablespoons. It’s interesting that your cookies came out so well with the extra butter, I’ll have to try that next time!
I was wondering about the use of raw egg. I guess its not a problem or you wouldn’t be posting the beautiful looking cookies. Just was wondering.
You can use powdered egg whites, Arlene!