"Det börjar lacka mot jul..."

It's inevitable. Christmas is soon upon us, once again. I took my first baby step in to the holiday spirit today by making myself a hot cup of coffee and brining out the good stuff: Anna's Swedish Pepparkakor (crisp gingerbread cookies). It was so good! Supposedly, you are not supposed to eat too many of them cause that would upset the stomach, but I am a bit of a Pepparkakor-rebel that way. I didn't care.

Recipe for Pepparkakor:

Swedish Pepparkakor with dinkel

400 g regular white flour
200 g dinkel/spelt flour
300 g sugar
250 g butter, at room temperature
125 g cream (35-40% fat)
125 g dark syrup (molasses should work fine)
7 g baking soda
7 g ground cinnamon
7 g ground ginger
4 g ground cloves
4 g ground cardamom
4 g ground bitter orange peel

Mix all ingredients until you have a smooth and supple dough. Divide into two or more smaller pieces, flatten into discs and wrap in plastic. Keep in the fridge for at least a week. When you're ready to bake, heat the oven to 175°C. Remove the dough (a little at a time) from the fridge, and knead until it's softened. Roll out on a floured surface, and use a cookie cutter to make shapes. Place on a lined baking sheet, and then bake for 6-8 minutes, or longer if you want them to be very dark.