Danish Christmas cookie - honey cake - takes 2 days
Servings: 10 servings or more
© danishthings.com In Danish, we call the cookies "honningkager," which translates to "honey cakes," but really, they are "honey cookies."
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Ingredients
Wet:
- 1 egg - size small/medium
- 100 g muscovado - or brown sugar ("Brun farin" in Danish)
- 125 g firm honey - the real stuff
Dry:
- 250 g flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1½-2 tsp honningkage spice mix* - or gingerbread spices
Royal icing:
- 1 pasteurized egg white
- powdered sugar
- 0-¼ tsp citric acid
- food coloring - gel or powder
- sugar decorations
Instructions
Day 1:
- Melt the honey in the microwave for 30 sec or melt it in a pot.
- Beat eggs and sugar until fluffy - 1-1½ minutes. Stir in the melted honey and beat for ½ minute.
- Mix flour, spices, and baking soda in a bowl, add the egg mix, and stir it with a spoon.
- Place the dough in a plastic bag. Store it in the refrigerator for a minimum of 12 hours.
Day 2:
- Turn the oven on - 160°C (320°F). Put a baking tray in the middle of the oven.
- Place the dough on a piece of baking paper, with another piece on top - so it does not stick to the rolling pin. Alternatively, you can put some flour on the table and over the dough. Remember that too much flour changes the texture and flavour of the cakes. To prepare the dough, flatten it using a rolling pin until it is 3-4 millimetres thick.
- Use cutters of various shapes and cut as many cookies as you can. Place the cookies on a baking sheet and ensure they are the same size - so small cookies on one baking sheet and large cookies on another.
- Gather the rest of the dough and continue the rolling and cutting. Place the dough in the refrigerator if it becomes too warm and difficult to work with. Or gather the rest of the dough and make a roll, which you can slice and bake another day.
- Bake the cookies in the middle of the oven for 8-10 minutes; watch them. The cookies are pretty soft when you take them out of the oven.
Royal icing:
- Stir a lump-free icing with the egg white and powdered sugar (+ a little citric acid). You can divide the icing into smaller portions and colour it.
- Fill the icing in a cornet of baking paper or use a small freezer bag and cut the corner off.
- Decorate the cookies with icing and sugar decorations.
Storing:
- Store the honey cookies in an airtight container.
Notes
*The Danish honningkage spice mix:
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 tsp. dried orange peel
- 1 tsp. ground cloves
- 1 tsp. ground ginger
- 1 tsp. ground allspice
Private notes
Bruger du US Customary, vær opmærksom på, at opskriften er lavet metrisk, og omregnet via et plugin.
If you use US Customary, remember that the recipe is made using Metric and converted via a plugin.