Speculoos Cookie Sandwiches ( For Baking Partners)

Just recently I posted a recipe for Kourabiethes - Greek cookies and today posting a recipe for Dutch - Speculoos Cookie Sandwiches (Also known as Speculaas )

For August month's Baking partners challenge Swathi had suggested four different types of cookies from around the world and so though I made Greek cookies I was also tempted to try these sandwich cookies. 

These are actually very traditional cookies made by pressing the dough in a mould and they taste a lot like ginger biscuits but with some more spices like cinammon, cloves , nutmeg etc....

These cookies really taste  very unique due to these spices. They are then  filled with a filling of our choice.

 I made my all time favourite lemon filling which was a hit and loved by all . But I would like to mention that without the filling also the cookies taste amazing. So now off to the recipe ......

Ingredients  For the Speculoos :

1/2 cup ...................cold butter cubed
2 tbsp......................curds ( original recipe calls for 1 egg)
1/3 cup....................sugar
1 n 3/4 cup...............maida
2 tsp........................cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp..................nutmeg powder
1/4 tsp.................pepper powder
1/4 tsp................cloves powder
1 tsp.....................ginger paste
1/2 tsp ................salt
1/4 tsp.................baking soda

Ingredients for the filling :

2 tbsp...................butter
5 tbsp..................sugar powder
1/2 tbsp...............fresh cream
few drops.............yellow colour
1 tsp....................lemon juice
1/4 tsp.................citric acid crystals
1/4 tsp................cardamom powder
salt pinch

Method to bake the Speculoos :

In a blender blend together every thing except maida.

Take the mixture in a bowl and add maida to it and make a dough.

Do not over knead the dough.

The dough should not be sticky.

Plastic wrap the dough and keep it in the fridge overnight.

Next day roll the dough and cut the cookies in desired shapes.

Arrange them on a greased tray.

Bake them in a preheated oven for 10 mintues at 180 degrees.

Cook them completely.

Method for the filling :

Beat the butter and sugar very well.

Add cream and cardamom powder and again beat well.

Now add salt and lemon juice and beat .

If the filling is soft keep it in fridge for some time to make it little stiff.

Put the filling on the cookes and top with another cookie.

Keep the cookies in fridge otherwise the cream starts melting.