Hungarian Honey Cakes (Mézeskalács)
- Ready In:
- 24hrs 6mins
- Ingredients:
- 15
- Yields:
-
24-48 cookies
- Serves:
- 24-48
ingredients
- 4 cups flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2⁄3 cup honey
- 1⁄2 cup unsalted butter (4 TBSP or 2 ounces)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 lemon, rind of, grated
- 1 egg
-
BAKING AND PRE-BAKING DECORATION
- extra egg(s) for egg wash
- 3 drops red food coloring (optional)
- poppy seed (optional)
-
COLORED SUGAR ICING
- 1 egg white
- powdered sugar, sifted (as much as needed to make fairly stiff paste)
- 3 drops food coloring, of choice
directions
-
DAY BEFORE BAKING:
- Sift together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, cloves and baking soda.
- Melt together the butter and the honey, pour over the flour combination and stir to mix.
- Add 1 egg and knead together. The dough should be soft (you can add a bit of lukewarm water if necessary), since it will harden a bit during its resting period.
- Cover the dough in a bowl and let it rest at least one day at room temperature.
-
BAKING DAY:
- Rolling out the dough is easiest between two pieces of waxed paper.
- Cut desired shapes out of the dough (of about 3/8 inches thickness on average).
- Before baking, brush with the yolk of an egg to which a few drops of red food coloring have been added. If you are decorating with seeds, brush dough with egg white to "paste" seeds on top of dough before baking.
- (Alternately, let the honey cakes rest a few days and then decorate with colored sugar icings.).
- Place cut out pieces of dough on a cold, greased cookie sheet, bake at 350 degrees F. (or less) for about 6-8 minutes. Thicker pieces may need a longer time (ovens temperatures also vary).
-
DECORATION:
- If icing cookies, let the honey cakes rest a few days and then decorate with colored sugar icings.
-
MAKE VARIOUS COLORED SUGAR ICINGS:
- Colored sugar icing, one version: To one egg white, add as much sifted powdered sugar as needed to make fairly stiff paste. Add desired food colorings, separated by color. (Do not use a mixer!)
- Spoon this mixture into a small nylon baggie, cut a tiny hole in one corner, roll up and use like a pencil to draw and color.
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
KateL
Joppa, Maryland
I love to eat yummy healthy foods!