Pfeffernusse Sugar Cookies with Easy Marbled Icing
Thick, chewy sugar cookies made with traditional German pfeffernusse spices are a holiday treat. The almond glaze on top is a great, easy alternative to royal icing since it doesn't use egg whites or meringue powder. Just dot a few drops of gel food coloring into the white icing base, swirl with a toothpick, and you have beautifully marbled cookies for any occasion.
Servings 2 dozen cookies
Ingredients
PFEFFERNUSSE SUGAR COOKIE INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1-2 tsp anise extract**
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 1 tbsp milk
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 3/4 tsp ground cloves
- 3/4 tsp ground ginger
- 3/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 3/4 tsp ground black pepper (NOT freshly ground)
- powdered sugar (for rolling out the dough after it has chilled)
ALMOND MARBLED ICING INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tbsp light corn syrup
- 1/4 cup room temperature water, added in small amounts
- 1/2 tsp almond extract (or, to taste)
- gel food coloring (as many colors as you want!)
Instructions
PFEFFERNUSSE SUGAR COOKIE DOUGH INSTRUCTIONS
- Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, cream together the butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy.
- Beat in the egg and the milk until combined.
- Add in the anise extract** and beat into the mixture.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and black pepper.
- Gradually beat the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until all ingredients are thoroughly incorporated and a thick cookie dough has formed.
- Divide the dough in half, pat each half into a disc, and wrap each disc in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2-3 hours, or overnight.
PFEFFERNUSSE SUGAR COOKIE BAKING INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Line 2-4 cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- Sift powdered sugar over your work surface. I like to roll out dough on chilled silpats.
- Remove one disc of chilled dough from the fridge. Use a rolling pin to roll dough out over your powdered work surface to a ¼ inch thick.
- Use your cookie cutters to cut out your desired shapes and place cookies on the prepared baking sheets. Repeat rolling and cutting process with all remaining dough. Cookies should be at least 1 inch apart since they will spread slightly in the oven.
- Bake cookies at 375F for 7-9 minutes, or until just starting to brown on the edges.
- Remove baked cookies from oven and let rest 1-2 minutes before transferring them to cooling racks. Cool cookies completely before decorating.
MARBLED ICING AND DECORATING INSTRUCTIONS
- In a large bowl, whisk together the 2 cups powdered sugar, cornstarch, and almond extract. Thin out the mixture by adding a little water at a time until you have a thick but pourable icing.
- Pour the icing into individual bowls (make sure your largest cookies will fit in them!). Add 1-2 drops (no more!) of your desired gel food coloring(s) to each bowl, then lightly swirl the colors together with a toothpick. Two or three swirls should do it.
- Dip a cooled cookie face-down in the marbled icing, let sit for a few seconds, then GENTLY tug it up and away from the bowl. Flip the cookie over so the icing side is now facing you, and you should see a marble pattern.
- Place decorated cookies on a baking sheet to let the icing dry completely before storing. Repeat marbling process as needed with as many cookies and colors as you want!
Notes
**The anise flavor deepens over time, so if you want a lighter anise flavor, use only 1 tsp of anise extract. If you love anise, put in 2 tsp.