Elusive German cookie

October 23, 2018 4:33 PM

Decades ago in elementary school we had an international food day. Someone brought in (apparently) German cookies which I have since thought of occasionally, but unable to identify and find recipes for.

They were:
-round (not flat)
-dark molasses color
-hard as a rock and had to be sucked on first (this counts as a plus for me)
-vaguely ginger snap flavor perhaps? I remember they weren’t entirely sweet
-the ones we ate didn’t have nuts or chips

If these are just ginger snaps, that’s fine, but it’s entirely possible I’m missing out on a type of cookie because I can’t read German. Do these sound familiar? If yes, recipes please!

posted by lesser weasel to Food & Drink (21 answers total)

Sounds like pfeffernusse.
posted by makonan at 4:39 PM on October 23, 2018 [14 favorites]

From the 1963 edition of Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book...Dark Pfeffernüsse Cookies.
posted by MonkeyToes at 4:43 PM on October 23, 2018

As a long time consumer of German cookies, I'll nthing Pfeffernüsse as well.
posted by Ashwagandha at 4:53 PM on October 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Doesn't sound like pfeffernusse to me - those are quite soft, not so hard you had to suck on them. The ginger snaps (aka ginger nuts) you get in the UK are like that though - very hard and often dunked in tea to soften them.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 5:07 PM on October 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Lebkuchen maybe? I've never had them rock hard, though they tend to be served with a drink like biscotti are. Maybe the ones you are were stale.

The other ginger cookie I can think of is printen but I don't think your description quite matches that.
posted by backseatpilot at 5:22 PM on October 23, 2018 [3 favorites]

My guess is these lebkuchen or pfeffernuesse. I have a family member who always brings them over for holiday meals and your description is spot on my memories of trying both of those.
posted by augustimagination at 5:25 PM on October 23, 2018

I think these are pfeffernuse. My grandmother, who was Swedish, used to make them all the time and while they were soft right after baking they did harden up just as you describe, and they tasted like you describe. I've had other recipes that stay soft, but she was a pretty good baker and I think that if they routinely hardened up it was because they were supposed to.
posted by Frowner at 5:25 PM on October 23, 2018

Wikipedia says Pfeffernüsse are also called pepernoten in Dutch, and I've definitely had some hard/crunchy pepernoten before.
posted by trialex at 5:26 PM on October 23, 2018

Where did you go to school? A crunchy pfeffernusse cookie, without the usual powdered sugar coating, is a Mennonite specialty.
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:38 PM on October 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Except for the round part, they sound a lot like Spekulaas cookies.

If you're near an ALDI, they carry an awesome version of this cookie during the holidays. Maybe give it a try?
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:03 PM on October 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Where did you go to school?

This would have been either in southern Maryland or close to Concord, MA, depending on age (we moved a lot).
posted by lesser weasel at 6:09 PM on October 23, 2018

St. Mary’s County has Amish and Mennonite communities (concentrated in the Charlotte Hall, Mechanicsville, and Loveville areas).
posted by Iris Gambol at 6:55 PM on October 23, 2018

Sounds like Springerle to me. My grandma used to make them. While they were light in color they were hard as a fucking rock, only mildly sweet, and taste of anise. She'd roll out sheets under a roller with different indented patterns before baking.

They'd often puff up a crust during baking, but were usually rectangular, though it doesn't seem the rule.
posted by so fucking future at 7:19 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]

Any chance they were Russian pryaniki? The basic idea is a dense cake-like gingerbread cookie, with many variations which may be frosted, covered in powdered sugar, or contain jam inside.
posted by danceswithlight at 7:27 PM on October 23, 2018

They might be Pfeffernüsse - they're also known as peppernuts and there are lots of variations. I wonder if there are fewer variations in Germany?

My family makes them about the size of a fingernail, crunchy, slightly darker than ginger snaps, and without the coating.
posted by meemzi at 10:22 PM on October 23, 2018

I believe you were dealing with Printen.. they exist in a chocolate covered and non chocolate form (the latter being superior) - Printen can be soft or hard (depending on how long they were exposed to outside humidity).
posted by mathiu at 1:20 AM on October 24, 2018

Sounds like the Mennonite/small crunchy version of pfeffernuss to me too.
posted by Knicke at 3:03 AM on October 24, 2018 [2 favorites]

Yeah, there are two kinds of peppernuts. The one that you see commercially is 2-3 cm (1 inch) in diameter, covered in powdered sugar, and basically has the texture of a shortbread cookie. The traditional Pennsylvania "Dutch" one is much smaller, 1 cm or so, and can be baked very hard. The flavor is typically anise, but powdered ginger is definitely in there. The former is fine, the latter are glorious.
posted by wnissen at 8:55 AM on October 24, 2018 [1 favorite]

Did it have a very light glaze? It reminds me of Lebkuchen, which we also got as kids in school (in Minnesota).
posted by wenestvedt at 1:02 PM on October 24, 2018

From the Mennonite Community Cookbook:

Peppernuts (Pfeffernusse) (1)

1/3 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
Approximately 6 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sweet cream
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon peppermint extract

Cream shortening and sugar together. Add flavoring. Add sweet cream and beat until fluffy. Sift flour. Measure and add baking powder and salt. Sift again. Add sifted dry ingredients alternately with milk. Beat until a medium-soft, smooth dough is formed. Chill dough in refrigerator for several hours. When thoroughly chilled, divide dough into 5 or 6 parts. Remove one portion from refrigerator at a time and turn out on a lightly floured board. Cut off small portions and form into fingerlike sticks, rolling with the flat part of the hand. Lay sticks in parallel rows and cut across, making pieces the size of a small marble. Place pieces close together on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 425 degrees until they begin to turn a light, golden brown. These cookies are especially popular at Christmas time in many Mennonite homes. --Elizabeth Warkentin, Mountain Lake, Minn.

Pfeffernusse (2)

4 eggs
1 pound powdered sugar
About 4 cups flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon [baking] soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

Beat eggs until frothy. Gradually add powdered sugar and lemon juice and rind. Sift flour. Measure and add salt, soda, and spices. Sift again. Add sifted dry ingredients to egg and sugar mixture. Beat until a medium-soft dough is formed. Chill dough in refrigerator and carry out directions given in preceding recipe. --Mrs. Julia Augspurger, Hamilton, Ohio
posted by MonkeyToes at 3:50 PM on October 24, 2018 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: The cookies definitely weren't as tiny as fingernail squares, but the same size as the Dark Pfeffernüsse Cookies up top (no powdered sugar). Lots of good leads, though, thank you all! It looks like a lot of these use the same spices, so I'll probably just buy the ingredients and make a whole bunch and see what comes closest.
posted by lesser weasel at 6:01 PM on October 24, 2018 [1 favorite]