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Honey Lebkuchen Hearts
Makes about eight dozen 2 to 31/2 inch square cookies.
3/4 cup
honey
1/2 cup sugar
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 cups plus 2 Tbs. flour
1 Tbs. cinnamon
1 1/4 tsp. mace
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. (scant) cardamom
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup slivered almonds, finely ground (3 ounces)
3 Tbs. minced candied lemon peel
Grated peel of 1/2 medium lemon
1 medium egg
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
Icing:
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 to 2 tsp. water
Cinnamon red-hot candies and silver sprinkles
1 to 2 drops red food coloring (optional)
Blend honey
and sugar in heavy small saucepan. Stir in chocolate. Place over
low heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves and
chocolate is melted, about 15 to 20 minutes; do not boil. remove
from heat and let cool.
Stir in flour, spices, baking powder and baking soda; set aside.
Blend finely ground almonds and candied and grated lemon peels in
small bowl.
Beat egg in medium bowl of electric mixer at medium speed until
light and fluffy. Gradually beat in cooled honey mixture and
vanilla. Reduce Reduce mixer speed to low and blend in almond
mixture. gradually beat in dry ingredients, stirring in last 1/2
cup by hand if mixer begins to slow down (dough will be slightly
soft and sticky). Divide dough in half; wrap in plastic and
flatten into disk. refrigerate at least 6 hours, preferably
overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. generously grease baking sheets.
Dust work surface and rolling pin generously with flour. Working
quickly so dough stays chilled, roll dough out slightly less than
1/4 inch thick, lifting frequently and dusting with flour as
necessary to prevent sticking. (Dough can also be rolled out
between sheets of plastic wrap or waxed paper.) Using heart
shaped cutters of various sizes, cut out cookies one at a time;
brush off any excess flour. Immediately arrange on prepared
baking sheets, spacing 3/4 inch apart (if some hearts are much
bigger than others, bake in different batches). If dough and
trimmings become to sticky to handle, rechill and reroll. bake
until cookies are almost firm and very lightly browned at the
edges, about 10 to 12 minutes; do not over bake. Let cool 1 to 2
minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.
For icing:
Mix powdered sugar, lemon juice and 1 1/4 tsp. water in small
bowl until smooth. Stir in additional water a few drops at a time
until icing holds it's shape but is soft enough to be piped
through pastry bag fitted with No. 2 (fine line) decorator tip.
Pipe attractive edging around each heart, making dots, straight
or wavy lines. crisscross or scallops. Pipe additional icing onto
each heart and top with cinnamon candies and silver sprinkles.
(If desired, prepare extra half recipe of icing and tint with
food coloring. Pipe onto cookies for further decoration.) let
cookies stand until icing is completely set. Store cookies in
airtight containers for up to 4 weeks.
Cookies can be frozen for up to 2 months.