Jan Hagels, Anyway You Slice It, That’s the Way I Want It
Bah Humbug, for some reason I have not been able to get into holiday “drive”. Maybe I’m still jet lagged from our trip to New Orleans or I am still in a Creole butter coma.
The Cookie Cure
Gotta Snap Out Of It. Maybe baking tried and true recipes might work. I dug out my Christmas cookie journal to peruse and get in the cookie mood. A binder filled with cookie recipes from magazines, photocopies of recipes from books along with my own notes, and pictures drawn by my kids when they were little. It’s my cookie bible.
I flipped to “Our Favorite Cookies”, from an old issue of Ladies Home Journal. Ninety percent of you are thinking, what? It’s a Women’s magazine, think, Better Homes and Garden with dresses and makeup tips. Raise your hand if you remember it (seriously dating yourself now). This is the epicenter of my annual holiday cookie extravaganza.
Jan Hagels are on the “gotta make them every year” part of the list. Which is always a good way to start to find your cookie groove. These little Dutch gems are thin and crispy, spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and allspice, and flecked with sliced almonds. They are my mom’s favorite and the first one she will reach for on the cookie platter. How can I not start with these?
Options, roll out the Jan Hagel dough and emboss the dough for traditional Jan Hagel OR form the dough into a log, chill, slice, and bake. Yeah, picking option #2. Chill the dough well, which makes it much easier to slice into the prerequisite 1/8-inch slices. Bake on parchment as the cookies will stick to the pan as they cool. Trust me on this one.
This recipe makes quite a few cookies and the finished cookie keeps very well. Stash a log in the fridge or freezer for freshly baked cookies at a moment’s notice.
Just Can’t Put My Finger On It
The Walnut Thumbprints from the same article also find their way onto my annual baking list. They’re buttery, nutty, tender, a little bit crumbly, and absolutely delicious. Last year I switched hazelnuts for the walnuts, a genius move. Find toasted hazelnuts at TJ’s, which makes life infinitely easier. As much as I love pecans, they aren’t a good choice, they don’t have that pronounced bite walnuts and hazelnuts have.
Slice, Slice Baby
On a roll with slice and bake cookies. Next up, Ginger Oaties from Grand Central Bakery cookbook, a book that has languished on my shelf for years.
Jan Hagels
Ingredients
Da Dry Stuff
- 1-1/2 cup All purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp allspice
Cream the Following:
- 1/2 cup butter reg salted (its an old recipe), if using unsalted increase salt to 1/2 tsp, 1 stick or cube
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
Da Wet Stuff
- `1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Adds
- 3/4 cup sliced almonds
Instructions
- Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and allspice in medium bowl. Beat butter and sugars in mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture until blended. Stir in almonds.
- Gather and shape dough into 8x2-1/2 -1-12 inch brick. Wrap in wax paper or parchment and chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Cut brick crosswise into 1/8-inch thick slices. Line cookie sheet with parchment and bake 8-10 minutes until firm.
- Cool on wire rack. Makes 3-1/2 dozen