German Gingerbread Cookies (Lebkuchen)
This gingerbread cookies recipe is the number one cookie eaten in Germany at Christmas time. It's a spiced almond and hazelnut cookie that is super popular for its soft center and sugar-glazed or chocolate-covered outside.
- Prep time
- 30 min
- Cook time
- 25 min
- Yield
- 24 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 40 milliliters orange juice
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 200 grams brown sugar
- 150 grams almond flour (ground almonds with or without skin on)
- 140 grams ground hazelnuts (either buy it ground (harder to find) or grind your own using a food processor)
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 Tablespoon gingerbread spice
- 24 cookie wafers (called Oblaten (an edible paper-like bottom for the Lebkuchen cookies, I order mine online))
- 130 grams powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 90 grams semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon neutral-tasting oil (I use avocado oil)
Instructions
- 1
Grate the lemon and orange zest until you have about 1 teaspoon each. Juice the orange and reserve around 40 milliliters (2 ½ Tablespoons). Juice the lemon and reserve 2 to 4 Tablespoons for the sugar glaze (if making).
- 2
Beat the eggs on the highest setting of your mixer for about 1 minute.
- 3
Add the sugar, vanilla and gingerbread spice and beat for 2 more minutes.
- 4
On the lowest setting, add in the remaining ingredients. Allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes, so that the wet ingredients can soak into the dry ingredients and thicken the mixture.
- 5
Preheat your oven to 285° Fahrenheit (140° Celsius) using your non-convection setting aka conventional setting.
- 6
Onto each Oblate, place one tablespoon of Lebkuchen dough (easiest to use a cookie scoop), and distribute onto the Oblate, forming a slight mound towards the center of each cookie.
- 7
Bake on parchment paper covered baking sheets for 25 minutes.
- 8
While your gingerbread is baking, prepare the glaze. Either make both or just one of them (double the recipe for either if you're just making one of them).
- 9
For the sugar glaze, combine the powdered sugar, water and lemon juice and warm in the microwave for 30 seconds.
- 10
For the chocolate glaze, combine chocolate chips and oil and microwave in 30 second increments until melted (stir in between).
- 11
Remove your baked gingerbread from the oven and allow to cool for just a couple of minutes.
- 12
Brush on the glaze and allow to set up (this can take up to 2 hours at room temperature or about 30 minutes in the fridge or in a cold garage).