Speculoos

Ingredients

Dough

• 500 gplain flour
• 300 gsoft dark brown sugar, or cassonade
• 250 gbutter, softened
• 1egg
• 1 tspbaking powder
• a pinch of salt
• 2 tbspmilk, if needed

Speculaaskruiden, the spice mix

• 3 tspground cinnamon
• 1 tspground nutmeg
• 1 tspground cloves
• 1 tspground ginger
• ½ tspground cardamom
• ½ tspground white pepper
• ½ tspground coriander seed
• a pinch of mace

Equipment

• carved wooden speculoos moulds, or a rolling pin
• a sharp knife

To serve

• with coffee
• on 6 December

Directions

1. Use soft dark brown sugar, or Belgian cassonade, not white sugar. Grind your own spices if you can, since ground spice loses most of its aroma within months. Mix all the spices together first, so they are evenly distributed. Cream the butter and dark sugar together until well combined but not aerated.
2. Beat in the egg until fully combined. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and the spice mix and bring it to a firm dough. Add a spoonful of milk only if it will not come together. Wrap the dough and refrigerate it for at least 24 hours, and two or three days is better. That long rest is not about firming the butter.
3. Take it out and let it soften slightly before rolling. Now the moulds, if you have them. Dust the carved mould generously with flour and tap out the excess. Flour the mould every single time.
4. Press a piece of dough firmly into the mould, working it right into the carving with your thumbs. Press it into the detail properly, since the whole point is a sharp image. If you have no mould, roll the dough thinly and cut it into rectangles, which is entirely normal.
5. Roll it thin, about 4 mm. Speculoos should be crisp all the way through rather than soft in the middle. Set them on lined trays with a little space between.
6. Chill the shaped biscuits for 20 minutes before baking. Chilling them holds the printed detail, which would otherwise spread and blur in the oven. Bake at 170°C (340°F) for 10 to 14 minutes. They are done when they are firm at the edges and just darkening.
7. Cool them on the tray for 5 minutes, then on a rack. Store them in a tin, where they keep for weeks and arguably improve. Serve them with coffee, which is why Belgian cafés put one in every saucer.

Technique

• Carved wooden moulds are sold in Belgium and the Netherlands and old ones are collected.
• Dutch speculaas is spicier and often contains almonds.
• The dough genuinely improves with several days of resting.

Substitutions

• A shop-bought speculaas spice mix, which is widely sold.
• Rolled and cut rectangles if you have no moulds.

Variations

• Gevulde speculaas, filled with almond paste.
• Made thick and soft rather than thin and crisp.
• With slivered almonds pressed into the back.

History

Spiced biscuit pressed in carved wooden moulds for the feast of Saint Nicholas on 6 December; the spices came through Antwerp’s colonial trade.

Frequently asked questions

What is Speculoos?

Speculoos is a snack from Belgium: caramelised spice biscuits for Saint Nicholas and coffee. Spiced biscuit pressed in carved wooden moulds for the feast of Saint Nicholas on 6 December; the spices came through Antwerp’s colonial trade.

How long does Speculoos take to make?

Speculoos takes 30 min plus overnight resting of preparation and 12 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 40 biscuits. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Speculoos?

Yes, within limits. A shop-bought speculaas spice mix, which is widely sold. Rolled and cut rectangles if you have no moulds.

What is the most important thing to get right in Speculoos?

Press a piece of dough firmly into the mould, working it right into the carving with your thumbs. Press it into the detail properly, since the whole point is a sharp image. If you have no mould, roll the dough thinly and cut it into rectangles, which is entirely normal.