Lea Hayes recipe for Joulu Piparkakku – Finnish Gingerbread Cookies – is to die for. It’s not your typical gingerbread cookie recipe. It’s buttery, spicey, melt in your mouth, and yes, very delicious.
Lea says the reason why this recipe is so dear to her is because her mom always made it at Christmas using what has become a family heirloom: a flower shaped cookie cutter. As soon as the house smelled like gingerbread and the decorative cookies were set to cool on the racks, Lea knew Christmas was coming.
“When I moved away and started to continue the tradition, it wasn’t the same,” Lea admits. “I didn’t have Mom’s flower cookie cutter, and even though they tasted almost the same, they didn’t look it.” That is, until her dad made her her very own cookie cutter using an Edwards Coffee tin.
“It made all the difference, and now the cookies are even more special each time
I make them because my dad made the cookie cutter just for me. The cookie tradition has a bit of my mom and my dad in it.”
So, if you have an inkling for something different, yet somewhat familiar, try this recipe out. And if you want to make your own designer shape cookie cutter, Edwards coffee in a tin can can still be purchased at most grocery stores.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of butter
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 Tbsp corn syrup
- 1 Tbsp warm water
- 3 cups of flour
- 3 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp each of ground cloves, nutmeg, allspice, cardamon
- 2 tsp baking soda
Mix butter and sugar, then add eggs one at a time, beating well after each egg. Add corn syrup and water and mix. Add dry ingredients and mix until blended. Cool dough in fridge. Roll dough on a floured surface and cut into shapes. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.