Almond Topped Cookies!
These jødekager, or Jewish cookies, are one of our absolute favorite Christmas cookies. They’re pretty simple – a crisp, sugar and butter cookie as a base, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and chopped almonds. They are cinnamon-y, sweet, crunchy, and buttery. We would one thousand percent recommend making these a part of your Christmas cookie repertoire!
So why are they called “Jewish cookies?” Well, the explanation is super simple. They were originally created by Jewish bakers in Denmark all the way back in the 1700s. Then, they somehow became a Christmas cookie, and are still known as jødekager to this day.
Tips & Tricks
The recipe for these cookies is very easy. We would recommend making the dough the night before and refrigerating it, as this gives the cookies a better final texture. Also, beware that since there is a lot of butter in the dough, it may start to get a bit soft as you continue to roll it out. But you can just use a bit more flour to help you out! They’ll turn out great regardless. Happy baking!
Jødekager (Jewish Cookies)
Ingredients
DOUGH
- 250 grams (about 2 cups) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 150 grams (10.5 tbsp) unsalted butter, cold
- 100 grams (1/2 cup) sugar
- 1 large egg
TOPPING
- Egg wash (one egg mixed with some water)
- Finely chopped unsalted almonds
- Cinnamon sugar (just mix together cinnamon and sugar)
Instructions
- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- Crumble the butter in the dry ingredients with your fingers until there are no big lumps and it resembles the texture of sand. Add the sugar and mix again.
- Add the egg and mix into the dough until it comes together. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
- When you are ready to bake your cookies, preheat your oven to 400 F (200 C). Line two or three cookie sheets with parchment paper (I bake two at a time, but it depends on your oven space).
- Using extra flour for the surface and rolling pin, roll out your dough until it is quite thin and cut into shapes. Carefully transfer the cookies onto your cookie sheets.
- Brush each cookie lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with almonds and cinnamon sugar. I find it easier to combine the almonds and cinnamon sugar into one mixture before sprinkling.
- Bake for 5 minutes, perhaps a bit longer if your cookies are on the thicker side. They should be slightly golden brown around the edges.
- Cool and enjoy! Store in a cookie tin or tupperware container.
This is not the real recipe as this calls for baking powder not ammonia bicarbonate
It’s still very much a “real” recipe even though there is no hjortetaksalt in it! When you live outside of Denmark, it can be difficult to find things like hjortetaksalt and potaske, so our recipes have been created with that in mind. We sometimes use hjortetaksalt if we have it but we can promise that the jødekager made without it are still very delicious.