Speculaas (Molded Ginger Cookies)

Name: Speculaas (Molded Ginger Cookies)
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 18 min
Total time: 78 min
Ingredients: 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon; 1-1/2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg; 1 teaspoon ground coriander; 1 teaspoon ground ginger; 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt; 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper; 12 tablespoons unsalted butter (softened); 1 cup packed light brown sugar; 1/3 cup milk

Dec 20, 2010 · Modified: Dec 26, 2021 by Andrea · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads · 41 Comments

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This is my final cookie in the Saveur Cookies We Love event, a spiced molded cookie called speculaas from the Netherlands. Molded cookies are common in Europe and the tradition is often passed down through families along with the old wooden cookie molds. If you are fortunate you may even have an heirloom mold that’s been in your family for years. My family doesn’t have that tradition so when I chose these cookies I needed to find a mold or two.

First I found some Wilton metal cookie molds at a brick and mortar store, and I chose one with gingerbread houses because I thought the boys would like those shapes, but I continued searching for a good wooden mold. My search led me to Gene Wilson, a retired biology teacher in Illinois who makes gorgeous traditional cookie molds out of cherry and beech wood. He doesn’t use patterns; each mold is started from scratch, and though he makes several of each style they are all unique. I spent a lot of time searching through his extensive catalog of molds trying to select the mold that would make our cookies this year. I finally decided on the dual gingerbread kids board, though I also had my eye on the nutcracker and a few others. After placing the order I received the mold about a week later, and Gene included a booklet about making molded cookies. I also purchased a copy of a book he recommends, Baking with Cookie Molds by Anne L. Watson, which thoroughly covers the history of baking molds as well as recipes and helpful tips.

After my first attempt at the cookies didn’t exactly turn out stellar, I tried again and got a better result. Through reading some of the recipes in Watson’s book, I learned to chill the cookies a bit before baking and that cookies will release much better from the molds if you use honey rather than sugar, and honey is more authentic anyway. The flavor of the Saveur speculaas cookies is very good, like a mild gingerbread, and my boys enjoyed helping to make the cookies. I taught Monkey Boy how to flatten a small piece of dough into a disk then press it into the gingerbread house pan. He got the hang of it and set off to make his own hand shaped abstract cookies. He was quite proud of himself.

I think these cookies, or some form of them, will become a family favorite because of the shapes, the flavor, and the process. The boys were very excited to see the cookies coming out of the oven and couldn’t wait to dive in.

GIVEAWAY

The gingerbread mold I purchased form Gene Wilson is gorgeous, carved from a piece of cherry with a beautiful grain and color. I think he does fantastic work. In celebration of the holidays and because I like these so much, I’m giving away one of his cookie molds, the medium Nutcracker (above), and a copy of Watson’s book to one lucky reader. To enter simply leave a comment below and tell us about your favorite Christmas or other holiday cookies, and if you’ve made molded cookies we’d love to hear about them.

Rules

Giveaway is open to residents of the United States and Canada. One entry per person, please.
The giveaway closes at 10:00 pm EST on December 24, 2010. Random.org will select the winner and I will contact the winner immediately. The winner must respond with 48 hours and provide a mailing address for shipping purposes. If the winner does not respond within that timeframe another winner will be selected.
I will announce the winner in this post once it’s official.

Disclosure: I’m am sponsoring this giveaway myself and paying for the prizes. I was not solicited by anyone to offer this giveaway.

The giveaway is now closed. Thanks to all who entered! Congratulations to amy for winning the cookie mold and book!

And finally, thanks to all my cooking baking friends, especially to Courtney for getting us organized, and to Claire for making our logo. I look forward to baking with you all again next year!

The Rest of the Cookie Baking Clan

Claire of The Barefoot Kitchen
Di of Di’s Kitchen Notebook
Judy of No Fear Entertaining
Kelly of Sass & Veracity
Michelle of Big Black Dogs
RJ of Flamingo Musings
Sandy of At the Baker’s Bench
Tiffany of The Nesting Project
Courtney of Coco Cooks

Recipe Notes

Yield may vary depending on type of molds used.

Prep Time includes chilling time.

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