Peppernut Cookies (German Pfeffernüsse)

Have you heard of Pfeffernusse? These cookies are a popular holiday treat in Germany, Denmark, and The Netherlands. Pfeffernusse are small, round cookies filled with ground spices, molasses, and brown sugar. Similar to a gingerbread cookie in fragrance, the anise in these cookies is the dominant flavor, with the cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and black pepper vying for the next spot in line. Also called Peppernut Cookies, the pepper doesn’t make these cookies spicy, but it is definitely present. Not all recipes include the pepper, but it was a fun ingredient to work with, so I chose to include it.

½ cup butter, softened
¾ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup molasses
1 egg
2¼ cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. anise seed, as finely crushed as possible
½ tsp. black pepper, freshly ground
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
¼ tsp. ground allspice
⅛ tsp. ground cardamom
⅛ tsp. ground cloves
1½ cups confectioners' sugar

Combine the butter, brown sugar and molasses in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Add the egg and beat to combine. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and all of the spices. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat to combine. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4).

Scoop about 1 Tbsp. of cookie dough and roll into a ball between your palms. Place the dough balls on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. Bake for 13-14 minutes, until firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the sheets for 3 minutes.

Place the powdered sugar in a medium sized container with a lid. Drop a few cookies at a time into the powdered sugar. Cover with a lid and shake gently to coat.

Transfer the coated cookies to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely. Repeat with all the cookies. Store in an airtight container.

Makes 36 cookies.

Nutritional Information:
Calories: 97kcal · Carbohydrates: 17g · Protein: 1g · Fat: 3g · Saturated Fat: 2g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g · Monounsaturated Fat: 1g · Trans Fat: 1g · Cholesterol: 11mg · Sodium: 74mg · Potassium: 52mg · Fiber: 1g · Sugar: 11g · Vitamin A: 86IU · Vitamin C: 1mg · Calcium: 12mg · Iron: 1mg