We’re recipe testing for Christmas, which is why there’s been a flurry of cookies in our kitchen of late!
Speculaas are always popular here – they’re spicy, crisp and an ideal dunking biscuit. However, we’ve never been able to turn out pretty moulded ones like the traditional versions.
When I read Sawsan’s blog post on making moulded bread, it suddenly dawned on me that I could use my kaak and ma’moul moulds to shape the dough. In particular, her suggestion to line the plastic moulds with cling film proved to be a lifesaver!
I started by reworking our recipe and substituting half a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) in place of the baking powder. Part of the problem in the past has been that the dough rose too much on baking, causing loss of definition. I also rejigged the flour to butter ratio to make a stiffer dough, and mixed it all together in our large food processor.
- 450g (3 cups) plain (AP) flour
- pinch of fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), sifted
- 225g (8oz) brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1½ teaspoons ground nutmeg
- ¼ – ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground anise seed
- 200g (7oz) unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
- 2 large (59g) free range eggs
- flaked almonds
Note: I have a strong, large food processor – you might need to halve quantities if yours is smaller.
1. In a large food processor, blitz together the flour, salt, sifted bicarb, sugar and all the spices. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
2. In a small bowl, beat the eggs together, then add to the mixture and pulse until the mixture starts to forms into a ball.
3. Turn the stiff dough into a bowl and mix any remaining dry bits in by hand. Refrigerate until cold, preferably overnight.
4. Divide the dough into quarters and use one portion at a time, keeping the remainder chilled until needed. Lay a sheet of cling film over the mould. Preheat the oven to 175C (350F) or 160C (320F) with fan, and line two trays with parchment paper.
5. Roll a small ball of dough and flatten it onto the mould with your hand…
6. Scatter a few flaked almonds over the top and gently press them in…
7. Using the cling film, lift the cookie off the mould and invert it onto a parchment lined tray. Using round cutters, trim the cookie into an even shape…
8. Alternatively, line a ma’moul mould with cling film and push the dough into the holes…
9. Bake for 12 – 15 minutes until brown. Allow to cool on a wire rack and then store in an airtight container.
I found that the moulds with the deepest markings left the clearest designs on the finished cookies…
The almonds on the back add a traditional touch…
I’m really very pleased with how these turned out! They’ll definitely make the Christmas baking list, along with the Spritz cookies and a few of the slice and bake rolls. Sawsan, thanks for the inspiration!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
I just love speculaas so thanks for this recipe. I won’t be doing the shaping bizzo (too lazy), but can’t wait to try them!
Amanda, squelch the almonds into the dough, shape it into a log, chill it, then slice and bake. :) They’ll still taste the same, but much easier to make!
Thanks so much Celia. My mother immigrated here from Germany as a small child. Now that my grandmother is gone, Christmas baking is about all we have left of our heritage. I’m thrilled to have a recipe of a Christmas favourite to adapt for our various dietary requirements, and even more thrilled to have another kitchen gadget – and local source for said gadget – to look out for!
As a new follower, it’s been a treat to read your blog. SOO wonderful to find a list of Sydney suppliers too; thank you!
Jacqueline, thanks for stopping by! I don’t know how authentic this recipe is, but I hope you can adapt it to something which resembles the ones you grew up with! :)
I’ve never heard of speculaas, Celia, though a quick Google helped me out. Even without knowing much about them, these have the holidays written all over ’em. The spices scream Christmas and would fill you home with the scent of the holiday. Very interesting to see how you produced speculaas with the decorative tops. I would have had no idea of how to proceed once the dough was made. My strengths lie in eating cookies, not preparing them. :)
Thanks John! I’m pretty good at eating them as well, if I’m honest.. ;-)
Excellent work Celia, Mrs Cacky Handed will admire from afar.
You’d nail these first time, Rose! :)
Don’t these look great Celia! I’ll have to make these and use my moulds- thanks for showing me how sweetie xox
Becca, they’re so versatile! Now that I have Swansan’s tip to line them with Gladwrap, I reckon there are oodles of options! I remember you having a very nice recipe for bikkies that held their shape – the ones you stamped with the “Home Made” press – they’d probably work really well with these moulds as well?
This should be called, art in the kitchen…I loved it dear Celia, Thank you, love, nia
Nia, you’re always so kind, thank you! xx
Aren’t you the clever cookie working that out….
Ha! Thanks Nancy! I love it when one idea segues into another.. ;-)
These look great! I just got a ma’amoul mould and it’s good to find another use for it.
Saucy, the plastic ones are great for chocolate as well!
Wow, you just gave me a reason to look for these moulds! :-D
i love speculaas and yours look delicious celia..
Jane, thank you! They were fun (if time consuming) to make!
That’s something I’ve never heard of before, a ma,amoul , what is it, please? Your speculaas look lovely, I have made those before but your recipe looks so good I will try it.
Jeannette, they’re a Middle Eastern sweet cake! I’ve never made them, but here are Sawsan and Glenda’s posts…
http://chefindisguise.com/2012/08/12/maamoul-stuffed-shortbread-cookies/
http://passionfruitgarden.com/2013/03/10/mamool-walnut-and-date-biscuits/
They look great. I much prefer thin crisp cookies (we call them biscuits) rather than the thicker chewy ones.
Pat, we call them biscuits too. These are hard and crunchy, but I find I can only get them really thin and crispy if I shape them into a roll and then slice and bake them. I squelched a handful of flaked almonds into the leftover dough from this batch and rolled it into a log. It’s now sitting in the freezer so I can make thin sliced bikkies, like these! :)
Celia, how big are your kitchen cupboards? They must be like Mary Poppins’ bag to hold all your equipment and the enormous amount of food you cook.
Anne, my husband is very, very clever with storage. :) And half the cookies went to the neighbours!
Nice blend of spices Celia! I have a specullos spice mix that I made up after a Daring Baker’s challenge. One of the spices was white pepper which was really interesting!
When I was reading recipes, I noticed that some had white pepper in the ingredients list. I should have added some! :)
Oh Celia thank you so much for the mention. I am really happy my post helped with these stunning cookies. I love speculaas but I usually make the ones stuffed with almond paste. I am sure doing them your way would result in amazing crunchy cookies I can’t wait to try!
Sawsan, it was a fabulous tip to line the moulds with cling film, thank you! I’ve never seen filled speculaas before, I’ll have to google that! :)
We made them for a daring bakers challenge once and I have been addicted to them ever since. They are called gevulde speculaas. Here is the challenge recipe http://chefindisguise.com/2013/01/27/gevulde-speculaas-dutch-spice-cookies-filled-with-almond-paste/
Fabulous! I’ll have a look, thank you! :)
Congratulations, I just knew you would figure out a way to make those cookies just the way you want them. One question, how do you keep track of all the gadgets you have? You must be an extrememly organized person.
It’s funny Norma, a friend of mine is buying a Thermomix, and I told her I’d never get one, because I actually LIKE the gadgets I have to do specific tasks (and do them well), not have an “jack of all trades” device. Having said that, I’m delighted that these moulds have proven useful for everything from cookies to chocolate! :)
Very nice! This is another good reason to visit a baking store this weekend. I hope you are safe from all the fires there.
Pamela, thank you! Yes, we’re fine here, fires are about an hour and a half away from us.
Be safe! I’m thinking about you and hoping it gets under control soon.
Thanks Pam. We’re hoping for cooler weather today…
I really like this recipe and they look amazing. You are to be admired for starting all this in October. I’m just finishing winter. :)
Some years we start thinking about Christmas the week before! This year, we were playing with cookies, so it’s fun to test some things out! No jam this year, methinks, we haven’t been to the markets much!
I love your special pans to decorate your speculaas cookies, they look fantastic, my dear friend!!!! Yum Yum Yum.c😀😀
Sophie, thank you! They’re actually not made for speculaas at all, I was just experimenting! :)
I thought so! :) good for you!
Hi Celia, that seems much easier than the windmill moulds!
Glenda, not nearly as pretty as your windmill ones, but at least they held their shape! I wonder if the gladwrap will work with wooden moulds?
The combination of Celia + Sawsan could only result in a masterpiece of the greatest proportion!
awesome job, Celia….
Thanks Sally! xx
Mmm, spiced cookies are a must at Christmas, these are perfect for the holidays. :) Like Maureen, I too am impressed you got started in October.
Judy, thank you…we’re not usually this organised! Often it’s the week before Chrissie before we start thinking about what to make! :)
I bet these cookies would survive a postal trip to Canada..just saying!
Oh yes, they’re very sturdy.. ;-)
Genius! And isn’t Sawsan’s blog brilliant too. I’ve saved your cookie recipe as I’m experimenting with pumpkin cookies and like the look of yours more than mine :)
Claire, pumpkin cookies! I’m amazed how creative everyone is getting with all their Autumn harvests! I think spiced pumpkin cookies would be fabulous! And yes, Swansan’s blog is absolutely wonderful!
Your cookies are so beautiful – I love your moulds! The recipe looks pretty tasty too with those spices.
Andrea, thank you! I was pretty happy with how they turned out! :)
Recipe testing for Christmas? I had better get started. I love how you re-work recipes to get the results you want. These speculaas look very good and I’ve also had that problem with biscuits rising too much so that the pattern all but disappears – sad face when I take them from the oven! xx
Charlie, I’ve been trying to make shaped shortbread for years – you know the Scottish ones in a big round? I’ve never succeeded – might be time to try again!
They look gorgeous Celia! I have a terracotta cookie stamp I’ve never, used an ideal recipe for its first outing. I have the older 5100 magimix with 1000w motor, not as powerful as yours; perhaps it would be a good idea to try a half recipe first.
Elaine, so happy to hear you’re home safely! The recipe should scale down well – no half eggs or anything like that.. ;-)
I forgot to say I returned home this morning; nice to be off the rollercoaster
You’re really just the best baker, Celia! I saw those speculaas and was wondering how on earth you pulled this one off:D Unreal, they’re pretty, beautifully designed and delicate. The perfect Christmas cookie, everyone will “ooh and ahh” when they see these.. xx
Barb, thank you! They were fun, if fiddly, to make! :) I wonder if I could hang them off the tree?
You could.. but they might start disappearing:D
So much fun to test and taste!
Tandy, you’re the queen of tinkering with a recipe! :)
So scrumptious! These cookies were a huge part of my life growing up in a European family. :-)
That must have been wonderful! :)
Oh yes, I love them and they look so good like this. I want one tomorrow….OK?
Of course! Then I’ll take you to buy the moulds.. ;-)
Gorgeous Celia! Where did you buy those moulds from? I can’t seem to find any out my way. Might have to do a trip out West…
They’re at Harkola, Lisa! In limited supply though, so don’t leave it too long! :)
What beautiful looking cookies – I LOVE those moulds. And many lovely photos too :))
Thanks for stopping by! The moulds are fabulous, and have had so many uses! :)
So pretty. I brought back a mould from Germany many years ago and I haven’t used it for ages. Great recipe and tips.
Sally, I’d love to have an authentic mould, but I DO like being able to put the plastic ones in the dishwasher! :)
Oh my do these sounds like the perfect afternoon snack. I love the moulds you have & the cookies look perfect.
Thanks Di! Small Man is particularly taken with them!