Please read through the entire recipe before proceeding.
This recipe can actually take anywhere from a couple days to a couple weeks before the cookies are done.
Ingredients:
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon anise extract
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
You will also need a springerle rolling pin
Instructions:
1. In large bowl, beat eggs on high for 3-4 minutes until very thick.
2. Gradually beat in sugar.
3. Beat sugar-egg mix for another 15 minutes - on high.
4. Beat in anise extract - 30 seconds.
5. Add flour, baking soda, and salt.
6. Mix well. (you can try beating in the flour mix until it becomes difficult to do so and then just mix well).
7. Cover with plastic wrap
8. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour; you can let it refrigerate overnight.
9. On well-floured surface, with regular rolling pin, roll dough into a rectangle.
9a. The width should be the same as the springerle rolling pin.
9b. The length should be about 11-12 inches.
9c. It should be about 1/2 inch thick
10. Coat springerle rolling pin with lots and lots of flour.
11. Using springerle rolling pin, roll designs into dough.
You may need to press hard.
12. Cut cookies along design lines.
13. Lightly grease two cookie sheets
14. Place cut cookies on greased cookie sheets.
15. Cover with cloth and let stand in cool place overnight.
16. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
17. Place cookies in ovent.
18. Immediately decrease oven temperature to 300 degrees.
19. Bake 20-25 minutes or until set but not brown.
20. Immediately remove cookies from cookie sheets.
21. Store in tightly covered container.
22. Cookies can be served after 8 hours but are better if stored for several weeks before serving.
Mark's Story -
Springerle cookies are my dad's favorite cookies. Several years ago, Trish got the recipe from my mom and made some as a Christmas present for my dad. Trish will every now and then make these for my dad as a present. This year, I was going to make these. How hard could it be??
Attempt #1 - After beating the ingredients for nearly twenty minutes, I put the dough in the refrigerator. Then I went to a school meeting. When I got home I was too tired to work with it and let it sit overnight. The next day, the dough I thought was too hard to work with, so I threw it away and started over.
Attempt #2 - This time I let the dough sit in the refrigerator for one hour and then rolled it out in the rectangle, then I used the springerle rolling pin on the dough. It stuck the pin and came up a gooey mess. It couldn't be salvaged. I tossed the dough mix.
Attempt #3 - I beat the eggs. I beat the egg-sugar mix for 15 minutes. I beat in half the flour and then mixed the rest in really well. I placed it in the refrigerator and let it there overnight. The next day, I pulled it out. It was difficult to work with at first, but then as I pressed and rolled it, I finally got it into a rectangle. Then Trish told me the secret is to thoroughly cover the springerle rolling pin with flour. So, I covered the springerle rolling pin with lots and lots and lots of flour. Then I took the springerle rolling pin and pressed it hard into the cold dough mix. This actually worked. I cut along the lines and placed the cookies on the greased sheets and let those sit overnight. Baked them the next day. Placed in air tight container and let sit overnight again.
