Nini's Perfection Springerle Cookies

If you have not tried it, here is my recipe for your enjoyment! Reread my entry on hartshorn….I personally would never make this recipe with anything but hartshorn. The cookie is much harder when made with baking powder!

1/2 teaspoon baker’s ammonia (hartshorn) or baking powder

2 Tablespoons milk

6 large eggs, room temperature

6 cups confectioner’s sugar (1-1/2#)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened but not melted

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon oil of anise, lemon or any other flavor

2 lb. box sifted cake flour (swansdown or Softasilk)

Grated rind of orange or lemon, optional

(enhances flavor of the traditional anise or citrus flavors)

More cake flour as needed

Springerle Recipe Directions 

Dissolve hartshorn in milk and set aside.  Beat eggs till thick and lemon-colored (15-20 minutes).  Slowly beat in the confectioner’s sugar, then the softened butter.  Add the hartshorn and milk, salt, preferred flavoring, and grated rind of lemon or orange, if desired.  Gradually beat in as much flour as you can with the mixer, then stir in the remainder of the 2 lbs. of flour to make a stiff dough.  Turn onto floured surface and knead in enough flour to make a good print without sticking.  Follow general directions for imprinting and drying cookies.  Bake on greased or baker’s parchment-lined cookie sheets at 225 degrees to 325 degrees*** till barely golden on the bottom, 10-15 minutes or more, depending on size of cookie.  Cool completely before storing in airtight tin containers.  They keep for months, and improve with age. 

Yield 3 to 12 dozen, depending on size.

Notes: Hartshorn 

 Yes, it’s the ingredient that stumps you. Hartshorn is also known as baker’s ammonia and ammonium carbonate. It is an old time leavening that literally used to be made from ground deer horn. Hart is the German work for deer and that is how it is so named. It is not commonly found in everyday groceries. Years ago I would purchase hartshorn (and also anise oil) at a pharmacy; that was back when pharmacies did compounding and mixing right in their shops. Not something easily found these days. Thus, many people started substituting baking powder in their springerle. I still really like hartshorn as it produces a fluffier, lighter and softer texture in springerle. Some springerle lovers grew up with the baking powder version and actually prefer the harder cookie that is the result….and that’s just fine. 

But if you decide to try the hartshorn, here are some things you shoud know.  Firstly, it stinks!! Yes when you open the jar it smells stongly of ammonia, which makes sense since it’s ammonium carbonate. Secondly, it will readily evaporate if you do not keep it tightly sealed (also why it’s aroma is so strong). Also, you should NOT eat the raw dough as it will give you a frightful and painful case of flatulence. This is probably another reason that it is not as commonly used anymore. Afterall, it is difficult to keep the cookie monsters at bay. The ammonia  dissipates when you bake the cookies. You can substitute hartshorn 1 for 1 for baking powder in other cookie and cracker recipes. Don’t use it in breads, cakes, or rolls, only in baked goods that are thinner and fully baked, so that you know that the ammonia is comletely gone. You might want to try it in a sugar cookie recipe, just for fun, to see the difference in texture.

http://www.springerlecookies.com/2011/01/recipe-its-long-overdue/