Provincial minister of agriculture Ernie Hardeman (PC-Oxford) remembers waking up as a child in the Netherlands on Christmas morning to find Speculaas cookies in his stocking.
The gingerbread-type cookie, also known as Speculoos or Dutch Windmill Cookies, is a traditional Dutch cookie. The cookie was made only on special occasions and Hardeman expects to have some at Christmas.
Speculaas dough does not rise much and can include the following spices: Cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, cardamom and white pepper.
Ingredients for Speculaas dough:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp Speculaas Spice Mix
pinch of salt
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
2/3 cup butter
3 tbsp lukewarm milk
Some recipes include slices of almonds.
Mix all the ingredients together and use a Speculaas mold or cookie cutter to get the patterns. Cook for 15 minutes at 350 F. Let the cookies sit for 30 minutes after cooking.
