Bored with typical Easter cookies? Try these ones from around Europe!
We love cookies – not only in browsers! Using the opportunity of the Easter Holidays our employees prepared something special for You. We share with you something different – cookie recipes from around Europe where Gemius is active :). It’s a great time to taste something different! Enjoy! Happy & Tasty Easter Holidays Wish You The Gemius Team
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CINNAMON HONEY COOKIES “MEDENJAKI” SLOVENIA
Ingredients • • • • • • • • • • • •
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature 1/2 cup clover honey, or other mild honey finely grated zest of 2 large oranges 3 1/3 cups flour 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 egg yolk 2 eggs glaze: 1 egg white beaten with 2 teaspoons water
Preparation 1. Combine the butter and honey in a large saucepan. Warm over medium heat, stirring, until the butter melts. Remove saucepan from the heat. Stir in orange zest and let stand until mixture cools to room temperature. 2. Meanwhile, thoroughly stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg in a large bowl and set aside. 3. Separate one of the eggs and set the white aside in a small bowl. 4. Add egg yolk and 2 eggs to the cooled honey mixture and beat with a wooden spoon. Stir in the dry ingredients until thoroughly incorporated and smooth. Turn dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 1/2 hours or up to 4 hours. 5. Preheat the oven to 190º C. Grease baking sheets and set aside. 6. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. If it seems too stiff to roll out, knead briefly to soften slightly. Roll dough out to 1/4 inch thick, dusting rolling pin frequently with flour and lifting the dough to make sure it isn’t sticking.
7. Using a 2 1/4 inch plain round cutter or the rim of a small drinking glass, cut out the cookies. Transfer them to greased baking sheets with a spatula, spacing about 2 inches apart. Gather and re-roll dough scraps and continue cutting out cookies until all the dough is used. (If the dough is too soft and sticky to roll out, refrigerate it briefly). 8. In a small bowl, beat together the reserved egg white and 2 teaspoons water with a fork. Using a pastry brush or a paper towel, evenly brush cookie tops with the wash. 9. Place cookies in the center of the oven and bake the cookies for 15 to 17 minutes, or until nicely browned all over and just slightly darker at the edges. Remove baking sheets from the oven and let cookies stand 1 minute. Immediately transfer to wire racks and let stand until cooled completely. 10. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Freeze for longer storage. Makes 35 to 40 (2 3/4 inch) cookies.
CARAMEL BISCUITS “NUTS” LATVIA
Ingredients • • • • • •
Biscuits 1 ½ cups flour 125g room temperature butter 1/4 cup sugar 1 egg ¼ teaspoon baking soda Pinch of salt
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Filling boiled ready caramel jar of condensed milk
Preparation 1. Cut up butter in pieces and add to flour. Mix together with hands until you get a crumbly mixture. 2. In a separate bowl beat egg white with sugar until white and fluffy. Add egg yolk and beat a bit more. Then add soda and a pinch of salt. Give it one last stir and mix into the flour mixture. 3. Once mixed, use your hands to form a ball of dough. If it sticks to hands add a bit more flour until it doesn’t stick. Cover the ball in cling film and refrigerate for 30 min.
4. Heat oven to 180°C. 5. Using your hands fill the cases with the thin layer of pastry. 6. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden. 7. Remove from the cases and once cooled fill one side of the “nut” with caramel and cover it with another.
RASPBERRY FILLED VANILLA COOKIES “VANILICE” SERBIA
Ingredients • • • • • • • • • •
¾ cup sugar 1 stick butter 1 stick baking vegetable shortening 2¾ cup flour 2 egg yolks 2 packets vanillin sugar ½ tsp salt zest of 1 lemon 1 jar - spreadable fruit raspberry- for filling cookies 1-2 cups powdered sugar- for coating cookies in
Preparation 1. Beat sugar, butter and vegetable shortening with mixer until well blended. Add egg yolks, lemon zest and vanilla sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Add flour and salt into the butter mixture, mix well. Divide into 2 parts, flatten between waxed paper, wrap and chill 1 hour or longer (I put mine in the freezer for 45 minutes and then transferred the dough I wasn’t using into the refrigerator). 2. Preheat oven to 325 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 3. Lay out a sheet of wax paper on a counter, then put half of one disk of dough on the wax paper, cover with another piece of wax paper and roll out to ¼-1/2 inch thickness. Remove top layer of wax paper and cut little 1 inch circles or scalloped edge circles out and put on prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 13 minutes (you
don’t want the cookies to be brown). Cool for 5 minutes, then spread a little bit of the raspberry jam onto one side of a cookie, top it with another (don’t put too much filling, you don’t want it coming out the sides). 4. Put the powdered sugar in a heap at the bottom of a bowl, and roll the stuffed cookie sandwich in the powdered sugar, put coated cookie on cooling rack to cool completely for 15 minutes. Store in an airtight container, in a cool place, and let age 5-7 days before serving. Can be stored be stored for a few months in the freezer and then brought to room temperature before serving.
BIRDS MILK Ingredients ROMANIA
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1 quart milk 6 large eggs 7 ounces (200 g) sugar vanilla extract 1 teaspoon flour
Preparation 1. Separate the yolks from the egg whites in different bowls. 2. Beet the egg whites until they become stiff and fluffy. 3. Add half of the sugar and beet again with the mixer. 4. Bring to a boil the milk in which you added couple of drops of vanilla extract. Reduce heat and simmer. 5. With a tablespoon, place the egg whites in the milk, leave for 1 1/2 minute then turn on the other side and leave again for 1 1/2 minutes. Remove the whites with a strainer on a separate bowl and skim the milk.
6. Mix yolks with the rest of the sugar and 1 teaspoon flour. 7. Pour slowly the vanilla milk on the mixture stirring continuously. 8. Bring the mixture to a boil for 1 minute. Set aside and add the egg whites on top of the milk. 9. Let it cool and refrigerate. Serve cold.
MUCENICI Ingredients MOLDOVA
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Dough Ingredients: 1 pound bread flour 3 eggs 3 teaspoons dry yeast 1 cup milk 5 oz (150 g) butter 5 oz (150 g) sugar • • •
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Syrup Ingredients: 1 cup water 5 oz (150 g) sugar grated lemon peel rum extract vanilla extract
Decoration ingredients: 9 oz (250 g) grounded walnuts honey 1 egg
Preparation 1. Prepare the syrup as a first step before proceeding to prepare the dough, so you can have it ready when the mucenici are out of the oven. 2. Syrup Preparation: 3. Boil the water with sugar, vanilla and rum extract. Simmer until it becomes thicker.
4. Let it cool and add the grated lemon zest. 5. Prepare the dough 6. For preparing the dough you can either do it manually, or you can use a bread maker machine, that has the option to make dough. Using a bread machine makes the recipe a breeze.
ŽAGARĖLIAI (Lithuanian Christmas or Easter cookies)
LITHUANIA
Ingredients • • • • • • • •
350 ml of kefir 600 g – 700 g of flour 100 g of sugar 2 eggs 1 teaspoon of baking powder pinch of salt cooking oil sugar powder
Preparation 1. Beat eggs with sugar and kefir. 2. Sift flour and mix it with baking powder and a pinch of salt. 3. Transfer it to the egg-buttermilk batter. 4. Knead a soft dough. 5. Cover the dough and leave it for 15-20 min. 6. Sprinkle the worktop with flour and roll the dough into 0.3-0.5 cm thick sheet. 7. Cut the dough into 2-2.5 cm wide strips.
8. In the middle of a small slit make a strip, through which push the dough against. 9. Place it in a preheated oil and boil it on both sides until they’re a light golden brown. 10. Place cooked donuts on a paper towel that absorbes an oil. 11. Place the donuts in a dish and sprinkle it with sugar powder. 12. Enjoy your meal!
CHOCOLATE CHIP OATMEAL COOKIES
Ingredients •
ESTONIA
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1 cup (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter (room temperature) 1 cup light brown sugar (packed) ½ cup granulated sugar 1 large egg (room temperature) 1 large egg yolk (room temperature) 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract 2 cups of flour 1 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon kosher salt or ¾ teaspoon regular table salt 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Preparation 1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line several cookie sheets with parchment paper, or lightly grease with non-stick vegetable oil spray. 2. Beat together the butter and sugars until smooth. 3. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla one at a time, beating well after each. 4. Whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt, and add to the butter mixture in the bowl. 5. Mix until everything is thoroughly incorporated. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, and mix briefly. 6. Stir in the chocolate chips. 7. Decide what size cookies you want to make. A muffin scoop (1/4 cup) will make 20 large, palm-sized
cookies. A tablespoon cookie scoop (4 teaspoons) will make 50 medium (2 3/4” to 3”) cookies; and a teaspoon cookie scoop (2 teaspoons) will make 100 small (2 1/2”) cookies. 8. Scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets. 9. Bake the cookies for 12 to 17 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown, with slightly darker edges. Their middles may still look a tiny bit shiny; that’s OK, they’ll continue to bake as they cool on the pan. 10. Remove the cookies from the oven, and as soon as they’re set enough to handle, transfer them to racks to cool.
“NON PLUS ULTRA” Ingredients HUNGARY
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250 g flour 120 g butter/margarine 70 g sugar powder 2 yolks 2 glairs 200 g sugar 200 g apricot jam
Preparation 1. In a bowl, whisk together flour, butter, sugar powder and yolks. 2. Roll out the pastry and cut shapes with round cookie cutters. Transfer them to baking sheets. 3. Wisk together the glairs and sugar. Load it to foam bag and put a little foam onto the pastry circles.
4. Bake cookies about 15 minutes (180°C). 5. When it got cold, glue together two circles with apricot jam. Let it rest for a day! 6. Enjoy!
UN KURABIYESI (TURKISH SHORTBREAD COOKIES)
TURKEY
Ingredients • • • • •
1 cup of unsalted butter (room temperature) 1 cup of flour 1 cup of sugar powder (split into 2 half cups) 1 teaspoon of vanilla ½ teaspoon of baking powder
Preparation 1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. 2. In a medium sized mixing bowl, cream 1/2 a cup of the sugar powder, the butter & the vanilla. 3. Sift the flour and the baking powder, slowly add to the creamed butter. Mix well with a wooden spoon. 4. One thoroughly combined, roll a teaspoonful of the dough at a time into balls. Place the balls on a baking tray lined with parchment or baking paper.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, they should be cooked through - firm - but remain pale in colour. 6. Dust the shortbread straight from the oven with some of the remaining icing sugar (sieved). 7. Allow to cool, then just before serving dust again with the rest of the icing sugar.
KREMÓWKA Ingredients POLAND
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1 pound puff pastry, thawed, if frozen 3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling 6 tablespoons cornstarch pinch of coarse salt 3 cups whole milk 6 large egg yolks 3 tablespoons plus 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Preparation 1. Preheat oven to 200°C with racks in upper and lower third position and line two baking sheets with nonstick baking mats. Divide puff pastry into two equal pieces. Sprinkle work surface with granulated sugar and roll out each piece of pastry to a 9-inch-by-13-inch rectangle. Transfer to prepared baking sheets and bake, rotating halfway, until puffed and deep golden brown, about 35 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. 2. Whisk together 3/4 cup granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium saucepan. Whisk together milk and egg yolks in a glass measuring cup. Add milk mixture to the saucepan, along with 3 tablespoons butter. Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Let boil 1 minute. Remove pastry cream from heat. 3. Strain pastry cream through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours or
up to 2 days. 4. Place remaining 3 sticks of butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Reduce speed to low and add vanilla bean seeds and cooled pastry cream, 1/2 cup at a time. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. 5. Place one rectangle of puff pastry on a cutting board and spread with pastry cream mixture. Top with second puff pastry rectangle and press gently to adhere. Loosely cover and refrigerate to set, at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours. To serve, slice with a serrated knife into 3-inch squares. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.
SHEQERPARE (COOKIES IN SYRUP)
Ingredients ALBANIA
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2 cups sugar 3/4 cup butter, softened 2 egg yolks 2 cups flour 1/4 tsp baking soda 3/4 cup water 3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract 2 to 3 whole cloves
Preparation 1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C. 2. In mixer, cream together butter and one cup of the sugar until fully incorporated. Add egg yolks, one at a time, until mixture is smooth. Stir in flour and baking soda a little at a time until a soft dough forms. 3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/3” thick. Cut into 2 inch rounds and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Place in oven and cook for 20 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned.
4. While the cookies are baking, add the remaining sugar and water to a small saucepan and cook over medium to medium-high heat for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the syrup spins a long thread. Remove from heat. Season with vanilla and cloves to taste. 5. When cookies are done, remove from oven and place on rack to cool slightly. Pour hot syrup over cookies. Serve at room temperature. 6. Yields approximately 30 cookies.
CARAMEL BISCUITS “NUTS” MACEDONIA
Ingredients • • • • • • • • • •
1 egg 1/2 cup ground walnuts 3 1/8 cup flour 1/2 cup oil 1 cup sugar 3 Tbsp. Honey 1 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. vanilla extract 1 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon confectioners sugar for dusting and/ or 4 ounces 60% cacoa bittersweet chocolate (melted)
Preparation 1. Pre-heat oven to 190°C. 2. Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle beater, beat the egg and sugar until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is light yellow and double the size (about 5 minutes). 3. Add the oil and honey and mix until combined. Add the walnuts, vanilla, cinnamon and continue mixing until combined 4. Mix the baking powder with the flour and add it to the egg mixture and mix. If the batter seems a little dry, add just a teaspoon or two of water. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it a few times until the dough is soft.
5. Working on a floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4” thickness. 6. With a cookie cutter or cup, cut shapes and place on greased (or use parchment paper) cookie sheet, leaving space between the cookies as they expand while baking. 7. Bake them about 15 minutes until golden brown around the edges. 8. Cool the cookies. You may eat them as are, sprinkle with confectioners sugar or dip in chocolate.
MALISORSKE PRIGANICE (FRIED DUMPLINGS)
MONTENEGRO
Ingredients • • • • • • • •
1 pound flour pinch of salt 2 teaspoons baking powder 2 tablespoons butter, diced 1 cup water hot water and 1 tsp salt, as needed 4 teaspoons butter or olive oil ½ cup honey
Preparation 1. Combine flour, salt and baking powder.
9. Remove the balls, drain, and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Rub in the diced butter until the mixture is like coarse meal.
10. Heat the butter and oil in a frying pan.
3. Stir in water to make a dough.
12. Press on the balls lightly to flatten them so then they fry evenly.
4. Knead for 10 minutes or more until smooth and elastic. 5. Divide into 8 portions and shape into balls. 6. In a large pot, bring salted water to a simmer. 7. Drop the balls in, one at a time. 8. Allow them to cook for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, from the time they start to float.
11. Place a few balls to fry gently.
13. When brown underneath, turn and cook until brown. 14. Drain on a rack and keep warm while frying the rest. 15. Serve at once with honey.
KHRUSTYKY (UKRAINIAN FRIED COOKIES)
Ingredients UKRAINE
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1 tablespoon whipping cream 1 tablespoon white sugar 3 whole large eggs 3 egg yolks ½ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 cups flour icing sugar, for dusting
Preparation 1. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and yolks together until light. 2. Add sugar, whipping cream, salt, vanilla and mix well.
5. Place dough on a floured surface and roll it very thin. 6. Cut into long strips about 1.5 inches wide and 2 inches long.
3. Stir in 1 cup flour until dough is smooth, еurn onto counter and knead.Keep adding up to an additional 1 cup of flour while kneading until smooth and dough is soft and elastic.
7. Make slit into center of dough strip.Open wide enough to loop one end through. Pull one end through to form a loose loop.
4. Cover and let stand in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
9. Viola!
8. Deep fry in oil that is heated to 180°C.
TEA COOKIES Ingredients RUSSIA
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2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed 3/4 cup powdered sugar, divided 2/3 cup pecans, finely chopped 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 pinch salt
Preparation 1. Preheat the oven to 190°C and line 1-2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Place in oven and bake for about 8 minutes, or until bottoms are just browned.
2. In a large bowl or mixer, cream together butter and 1/2 cup powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Then pour in vanilla extract.
7. Remove from oven and let cool 2-3 minutes. Fill a shallow bowl with remaining powdered sugar.
3. Add in flour and salt and mix until dough begins to come together. 4. Fold in pecans and mix until just incorporated but don’t over mix. If dough gets over worked, place it in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes before continuing. 5. Scoop 1 tablespoon (1-1 1/2-inch) balls of dough and place them on lined baking sheet.
8. Roll cookies in sugar until coated, then transfer to wire rack to cool. 9. Re-roll cookies in powdered sugar and serve immediately. 10. Voila!
“PRYANIKI” Ingredients BELARUS
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1/2 cup instant coffee 1/2 cup hot water 1 cup butter 1 cup sugar 1 1/2 cups honey 1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon allspice 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon anise (ground or liquid extract) 2 eggs 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda dissolved in 1 teaspoon white vinegar 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 6 cups flour
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Glaze: 4 1/2 cups powdered sugar 1/2 cup milk
Preparation 1. In a medium saucepan, dissolve the instant coffee in the water. 2. Add the butter, sugar and honey to the dissolved coffee in the saucepan. 3. Bring the mixture to a boil on medium heat and cook, stirring, just until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves and the mixture is homogenous. 4. Take off the heat, pour it into a large bowl and cool for about 10-15 minutes. Add all the spices – vanilla, allspice, nutmeg and anise. 5. Whisk in the eggs, the baking soda dissolved in vinegar and baking powder. You will notice that the mixture will fizz a little when it’s all mixed up. 6. Add the flour and mix with a large wooden spoon until all the flour is incorporated.
7. Shape the batter into approximately 1 tablespoon balls and place them on the prepared baking sheet, leaving some room around each cookie, since they will expand while baking. 8. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and the milk to make a glaze. 9. Dip the cooled cookies into the glaze, letting the excess run off. Set the glazed cookies on a rack or parchment paper to dry. 10. Enjoy!