Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups (300 g) amandelspijs/almond paste (see Tips) per speculaasstaaf
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- 1 3/4 cups self-rising flour (200 g)
- 1/2 cup donkerbruine basterdsuiker (see Tips) or cane sugar (demerera)(100 g)
- 7 tbsp butter (100 g)
- 2-3 tbsp milk
- 3 tsp speculaaskruiden (see Tips) or pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- The finely grated zest of half an orange
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- A sprinkling of extra flour to dust the work surface
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- To decorate:
- 1 egg white, beaten
- Almonds, flaked or slivered
- Optional: crystallized brown sugar (kandijsuiker)
Preparation:
Mix together the rest of the ingredients and knead until combined (you may use a mixer with a dough hook attachment for this). You should be able to shape the dough into a ball without it sticking to your hands. Add a few drops more milk, if needed. Cover the dough ball with plastic wrap and set aside for an hour. This allows the spices to work their magic.
Preheat the oven to 347 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). Grease a baking sheet. Flour your work surface and roll out (or press) the dough into an even, flat layer, measuring roughly 12" x 5 1/2" (30 cm x 14 cm). Roll the almond paste into a sausage shape that is about 1" (3 cm) shorter than the pastry (lengthways). Place on the pastry. Fold in the short ends of the pastry first, and then fold over the sides and press firmly at the seams. It's almost like wrapping a Christmas present, which seems somewhat seasonally appropriate.
Now carefully flip the pastry over so that the seam is at the bottom. Brush with the beaten egg and decorate with the almonds and sugar. Bake for 25 minutes. The almonds should have turned a glorious caramel gold and the cookie dough should be a slightly darker shade of brown. Remove from the oven and place on a wire cooling rack.
Makes 2, or 1 speculaasstaaf and a sheet of speculaas cookies.
TIPS:
