And now for a seasonal recipe - especially for those of you who like a wee bit of Lebkuchen. Runs rings around the shop bought varieties. From my 1930s Bavarian cook book and a must here for Xmas.
Honigleckerlei mit Punschglasur
100g honey
35g butter or margarine (softened)
125g brown sugar
1 heaped teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon mixed spice (or lebkuchengewurtz if you can get it)
good grating of nutmeg
zest of half a lemon
75g ground almonds
100g chopped mixed peel (blitzed to a paste)
250g flour (sifted)
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
couple of tablespoons of milk
plus:
4 heaped tablespoons of icing sugar
lemon juice
rum or whisky
water
Gently warm the honey in a saucepan together with the spices until it is runny. Cream the butter and the sugar. Add in the honey, the lemon zest, ground almonds and the mixed peel. Last of all, add the flour a little at the time. The dough will be quite dry and breadcrumby at this stage. Knead well, adding just enough milk to bring it into a ball. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge overnight.
To make the biscuits, divide the dough into four portions. Roll each portion into a sausage between one and a half to two centimetres thick. Slice diagonally into individual portions about 3 cm long. Place on a greased baking sheet (or a use baking parchment on the sheet, makes life easier later). Continue until all the dough has been used up. You will get around 36 biscuits from this quantity. Bake in a preheated oven 180C / Gas 4 for 12 - 15 mins. Best to err on the side of caution here as you want them to be a very pale golden colour. Any darker than that and they'll be bitter.
For the punschglasur, take four heaped tablespoons of icing sugar and sift into a mug. Add two teaspoons of water, a teaspoon of whisky or rum and a teaspoon of lemon juice. You should have something that is the consistency of runny honey – you can always add more sugar or liquid accordingly. When the biscuits are done, take them out of the oven – if you have used baking parchment, you can just pull the paper off the tray with the biscuits still on them. If not, transfer to a wire rack with some kitchen roll underneath. While the biscuits are still warm, brush over the glaze (you will have enough for two coats) and leave to dry.
When cold, store in an airtight tin. These are best made several weeks in advance, but in reality, they never seem to last that long as they're pretty good from the get go.