This is a really fun story and it is soon me!
I received a cake-and-cookie spice mixture in my advent calendar, so I though „Yes let’s male some christmas cookies“!. Because I was already missing long baking sessions with my family and friends in Germany...
But somehow it didn’t feel right to make the usual one.. with sugar and flour…. mh, no. So the project remained in my mind for a couple of days.
Then Friday came, and Friday late afternoon came. It was already dark outside and I was fed up by my computer. I walked into the kitchen and decided on the spot: Ok raw Lebkuchen! That’s what I gonna make. Name was set.
Everything else came just in the usual flow of my creativity.
I started with peeled almonds, like 1 cup. Blended them super fine in my high speed mixer. Then I grabbed 1cup of dried dates, 2tsp raw coconut oil and 1tsp of raw honey and blended this in another mixer until it was one big mushy lump in the machine! I put all the ingredients in a big bowl, added my spices (1tsp of a cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg mix) and went in with my hand. Kneading the dough I was surprised how similar the experience was to the „normal“ cookie doughs. However the best thing about raw food doughs, you are allowed to eat them raw! Haha!
I waited until the dough sticked together nicely, but wasn’t sticky to my hand anymore. Coconut oil to make it less sticky or honey to bind it more together can help!
Then came the real love-making with the cookies. I shaped them all individually with my hands. I took a big tsp of dough, made a little ball,
squeezed it between my hands to a little round cookie. To give it the perfect Lebkuchen shape, I played it onto a surface and pressed the sides softly down, creating a perfect round little mountain.
For the highlight at the end, I bathed the upper side of each cookie in raw cacao powder and applied it gently all over the Lebkuchen.
These cookies were really hugged, patted and made with a lot of love! Thus I decided to make St. Nikolaus presents of of them.
In the end I worked until midnight, cutting and crafting little boxes for each cookie and writing little personal messages while the cookies dried over my fireplace, my „dehydrator“! I listened to christmas music and slowly brought every cookies to bed in their new little home boxes^^.
At midnight I played St. Nikolaus for my two neighbors, placing two of my little gifts at their doorstep so they would see it the next morning as it is tradition in Germany. I went happily to bed, reflecting on how beautiful the christmas time can be if you take it slowly, open your eyes to the little beauties and wonders and be grateful for how simple and happy life can be!
Merry christmas baking to all!
JOY
Ruby
P.S. Obviously if you can also roll the dough thickly and cut out round shaped cookies instead of forming them by hand! But there is a beauty to it :)!
I received a cake-and-cookie spice mixture in my advent calendar, so I though „Yes let’s male some christmas cookies“!. Because I was already missing long baking sessions with my family and friends in Germany...
But somehow it didn’t feel right to make the usual one.. with sugar and flour…. mh, no. So the project remained in my mind for a couple of days.
Then Friday came, and Friday late afternoon came. It was already dark outside and I was fed up by my computer. I walked into the kitchen and decided on the spot: Ok raw Lebkuchen! That’s what I gonna make. Name was set.
Everything else came just in the usual flow of my creativity.
I started with peeled almonds, like 1 cup. Blended them super fine in my high speed mixer. Then I grabbed 1cup of dried dates, 2tsp raw coconut oil and 1tsp of raw honey and blended this in another mixer until it was one big mushy lump in the machine! I put all the ingredients in a big bowl, added my spices (1tsp of a cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg mix) and went in with my hand. Kneading the dough I was surprised how similar the experience was to the „normal“ cookie doughs. However the best thing about raw food doughs, you are allowed to eat them raw! Haha!
I waited until the dough sticked together nicely, but wasn’t sticky to my hand anymore. Coconut oil to make it less sticky or honey to bind it more together can help!
Then came the real love-making with the cookies. I shaped them all individually with my hands. I took a big tsp of dough, made a little ball,
squeezed it between my hands to a little round cookie. To give it the perfect Lebkuchen shape, I played it onto a surface and pressed the sides softly down, creating a perfect round little mountain.
For the highlight at the end, I bathed the upper side of each cookie in raw cacao powder and applied it gently all over the Lebkuchen.
These cookies were really hugged, patted and made with a lot of love! Thus I decided to make St. Nikolaus presents of of them.
In the end I worked until midnight, cutting and crafting little boxes for each cookie and writing little personal messages while the cookies dried over my fireplace, my „dehydrator“! I listened to christmas music and slowly brought every cookies to bed in their new little home boxes^^.
At midnight I played St. Nikolaus for my two neighbors, placing two of my little gifts at their doorstep so they would see it the next morning as it is tradition in Germany. I went happily to bed, reflecting on how beautiful the christmas time can be if you take it slowly, open your eyes to the little beauties and wonders and be grateful for how simple and happy life can be!
Merry christmas baking to all!
JOY
Ruby
P.S. Obviously if you can also roll the dough thickly and cut out round shaped cookies instead of forming them by hand! But there is a beauty to it :)!