Best Mennonite Black Pepper Cookies Recipes

PEPPERNUTS COOKIES RECIPE (PFEFFERNüSSE COOKIES RECIPE)

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl (preferably a Kitchenaid stand mixing bowl), add the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, molasses, and cream and mix well.
• Add the eggs, salt, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, anise oil, baking soda and baking powder and mix well.
• Add one cup of flour at a time and mix until the flour is absorbed into the dough. You do not have to over mix it. Note that the dough gets very stiff and can easily burn out hand mixer motors. For this reason, you should use a heavy duty stand mixer. In either case, if your mixer is struggling, then stop using the mixer and mix in the rest of the flour by hand. It can be quite a workout!
• Put the bowl of dough into the refrigerator for 30 minutes and allow the dough to get a little stiffer.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. If you have a double oven, then preheat both ovens.
• Lay out aluminum foil for the baked cookies to cool on.
• Tape wax paper to the top of your table, counter, island, or other kitchen work area.
• Scoop out a lemon-sized amount of dough and roll it into a ball in your hands.
• Place the dough ball onto the wax paper and use your palm and fingers to roll it out into a thin rope of dough 1/4 inch in diameter. The key is to be consistent and make these all the same size so they will cook in the same amount of time. If the dough is sticking to the wax paper, then sprinkle a small amount of flour on the wax paper to prevent this.
• Use a knife to cut the rope into small nut sized pieces of dough and place them on a baking sheet where they are not touching and there is room for them to grow as they bake so that the baked cookies won't be touching each other.
• Bake at 375 degrees F for 8-12 minutes until they are a golden brown color. Check them at eight minutes and bake them longer if needed. Make sure that you do not bake them too long or the underside will burn.
• Allow the cookies to cool on the baking pans for 5 minutes, then transfer them to the aluminum foil. The cookies will be a little soft when they first come out of the oven but will become very crunchy as they cool.
• Repeat rolling the dough, cutting the dough, loading the baking sheets and baking the cookies until all of the dough is used. This is a fun activity to get your whole family involved in for baking these holiday cookies.
• After the cookies have completely cooled, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month. If the cookies are not quite crunchy, you can leave the lid off of the container for a few hours and they will get crunchy.

PEPPERNUTS (PFEFFERNUSSE COOKIES)

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fit with a paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. About 3 minutes.
• Add the eggs, anise extract, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, white pepper, and clove or cardamom into the bowl and mix until everything is incorporated.
• Add the flour into the dough and mix just until it is incorporated. You do not want to mix for a long time, just until the flour is incorporated in.
• Press the dough out to about 1" thick and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 days.
• Preheat the oven to 350F (177C). Divide your dough into 16 pieces. Press 1 piece of dough into a ball and roll it out between your hands and a clean work surface to form a thin rope, about 1/4" thick. Use a sharp knife (or I like to use a bench scraper) to cut out tiny nut size pieces of dough. Place on a baking sheet. You can completely fill your sheet in a single layer, but you will need to bake these in several batches to get them all baked. It typically works out to be cutting out the next sheet pan of cookies while the one before it bakes.
• Bake at 350F (177C) for 10-14 minutes, until a dark golden brown. Check the cookies at 10 minutes and bake longer if needed. The cookies will be slightly soft when they first come out of the oven but will become very crispy as the cool. Store the completely cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month.

BLACK PEPPER COOKIES

Steps:

• Beat eggs with brown sugar. Stir in flour with baking soda, salt, spices and pepper. Add nuts, raisins and citron and stir to coat. Pour the egg-sugar mixture into flour mixture and stir to make a stiff dough. Chill.
• Using rounded teaspoonful of dough roll into balls with floured hands. Put on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 10 to 12 minutes. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.

BLACK PEPPER BUTTER COOKIES

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients (except for the extra sugar for dipping the glass) together well using a heavy duty mixer.
• Roll into 1/2 inch size balls-you will need three large ungreased cookie sheets, 16 balls per sheet.
• Use the flat base of a drinking glass that has been dipped into sugar to flatten each dough ball on the cookie sheets.
• Bake in a preheated 350 F (or 180 C) oven for 8-11 minutes or until lighly browned on the edges- do not overbake.
• Remove to wire racks to cool.

MENNONITE BLACK PEPPER COOKIES

Steps:

• Melt butter or margarine in medium saucepan.
• Add sugar, syrup, and vinegar.
• Bring mixture just to boiling.
• Immediately remove pan from heat; cool to room temperature.
• Stir in egg.
• Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, the 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, cloves, pepper and anise seed in a medium bowl: (note if using anise extract instead of seed add it to the cooled butter/sugar mixture from the first step instead) Stir into egg mixture; mix well to form dough.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight for flavors to blend and so that dough is firm enough to roll.
• Divide dough into four portions.
• Keep portions chilled until ready to roll.
• On lightly floured surface roll one portion very thin (less than 1/8 inch thick).
• Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters.
• Place on a greased cookie sheet.
• Sprinkle with ground cinnamon.
• Bake in a 375ºF oven for 4 to 5 minutes or until barely brown around the edges.
• Immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack; cool.
• Repeat with remaining portions of dough.
• Store in covered tins.

BLACK PEPPER CHRISTMAS COOKIES

Steps:

• Sift flour, baking powder and set aside.
• Mix the spices into the butter. Blend in the sugar. Beat in the egg.
• Stir in the flour mixture.
• Chill at least several hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Roll on a lightly floured board to 1/8 inch. Cut with cookie cutter.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until lightly browned around the edges.
• Cool and ice.
• Store in an air tight container.
• Glaze:.
• Stir water into sugar and mix well.

MENNONITE SOFT WHITE COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream shortening and sugar together.
• Add eggs and vanilla, beat well.
• Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl.
• Stir flour mixture, alternately with the buttermilk, into the creamed mixture, until it forms a soft ball. Add extra flour if necessary.
• Cover and chill in the fridge for about 1 hour.
• Roll out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thickness, cut into circles or desired shapes and place on cookie sheets.
• Bake at 375 degrees F. for 9 minute.
• Mix all icing ingredients until mixture is of spreading consistency. Make sure butter/margarine is softened before using. You can also add food colouring if desired!
• When cookies are cool, ice with icing.
• Sprinkle coconut on tops as desired.

BLACK PEPPER COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees, with rack in center. Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; cream on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Mix in vanilla and salt. Beat in egg whites until incorporated. Combine flour and pepper in a small bowl; add to butter mixture in 3 batches, mixing until just combined.
• Put dough in a pastry bag fitted with a 3/8-inch round tip (such as Ateco #804). Pipe 3-inch strips about 1/2 inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet, keeping tip close to sheet for thin cookies. Bake until edges are golden and centers are set, about 7 minutes. Let cool on sheet 5 minutes before transferring with a spatula to a wire rack to cool completely.