German Cinnamon Stars
My absolute favorite Christmas Cookie
photo by franziskas garten at flickr.com
I used to think, they must be very complicated to bake, because they taste so heavenly. But in fact, they're quite easy and straighforward to prepare.
Cinnamon and cloves are the typical flavors asscociated with Christmas in Germany, therefore Zimtsterne are the favorite German Christmas cookies (Weihnachtsplätzchen) not only for me, but for many others as well :-)
The only thing you need before starting, is a star shaped cookie cutter. If you don't have one (or more) you can usually buy it at any supermarket nearby. Just not shortly before the Holidays.
Last year we needed some last minute cookie cutters and had to find out, they were sold out in at least three shops !
Cinnamon Star Recipe
Ingredients
- 250g ground almonds
- 3 egg whites
- 250g powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 100g sugar
Beat the egg whites until stiff. Fold in powdered sugar until mass is consistent.
Put 4 tablespoons of egg white mixture apart for topping.
Mix ground almondas and cinnamon. Add egg white mixture to ground almonds until dough is thick and juicy, but not liquid.
Sprinkle your work surface with sugar and roll out the dough to about 0,5 cm thick.
Cover your baking tray with baking paper.
Cut out stars with your cookie cutter and carefully place onto backing tray.
Now use the reserved egg white mixture and brush the cinnamon stars with the topping.
Bake with 150°C until slightly golden. Be careful not to burn your cinnamon stars, as the topping should remain white.
Makes two baking trays.
Enjoy!