Do you like crunchy cookies, then these Dutch Kletskoppen Cookies are something you will like. Lace cookies is their American name. A mixture of mainly butter, sugar, and almonds and less than 10 minutes baking; that’s all it takes to make these cookies.
Kletskoppen is most likely a funny word to pronounce for most of you in the English speaking world; it is a funny word for a cookie to begin with. Let me translate it for you. A kletskop is somebody who talks a lot, a chatter box but then in a gossipy way. It also means a bold head or even something gross (an inflamed head). The latter two derive from old Dutch, Belgian and German language. An alternative, more appropriate name is Bruges lace cookie. Bruges as in a Belgian town; indeed known for its lace. These Dutch Kletskoppen Cookies are also similar to French Tuiles.
When you look at the picture, you’ll understand why it is called a lace cookie. Does not explain the kletskop term, unless ……………….. people enjoy the cookies, put their heads together and gossiped away 🙂
Whatever the rationale or history of these Dutch Kletskoppen Cookies, they are simple and very crispy. Sugar, butter and nuts, with a little bit of flour; mix that together and place that in a hot oven for a while, you can image that a lot of caramelization is going on, that makes the cookies, cracking crispy. They are like the sweet version of the Parmesan crisps. Some people prefer to make them with peanuts, but I only know them with almonds.
I am going to tell you how to make these Dutch cookies. First of all you have to skin the raw almonds. Bring a little bit of water to a boil, add the raw almonds and cook them for 1 minute. Don’t cook them much longer, because they become soft and that does not work well. Drain the almonds immediately in a colander and rinse them with cold water. You will see that the almond is loose in its skin. Dry them on a paper towel and start removing the skin with your finger. Put the almond between you thumb and index finger and squeeze slightly and the nut will come out.I guarantee you that some nuts will be flying around your kitchen counter, because they let go a little too easily, so this is kind a fun. Once all the skin is gone, allow the nuts to dry completely.
When they’re dry, you are already almost there. Next step is to chop the almonds in fine pieces; use your food processor or one of your attachments of your immersion blender (that’s what I used). You don’t want huge chunks of nut, but also not too fine.
Mix butter, sugar and milk. You can substitute the milk for water or coffee and you can use light brown sugar or dark brown sugar. The latter will give a darker cookie, obviously. Add cinnamon, salt, almonds and mix again. Add flour and mix again – last time though. Your batter is done. Now it is time to create your cookies. Make small balls or larger ones on a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper. Any size you want basically. Only be aware that the larger the ball, the more you have to flatten it to make them come out OK. With this recipe you can make about 15-20 Dutch Kletskoppen Cookies with a diameter of 2.5-3 inches. Bake them in a 400 degrees F oven for approx. 10 minutes.
WARNINGS!
- Do not place the cookies too close together; they will merge and you’ll have one large cookie. I used a 18×13 baking dish and spaced the cookies evenly from each other and from the sides of the baking sheet and they were not running together.
- Do not walk away from your oven! Before you realize your cookies are done and burnt the next second. Once your batter ball flattened out (and that goes easy with the butter and sugar) you wait until you see the right color (beautifully golden brown). Take them out of the oven.
Cool until they become a little harder and then move onto a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Dutch Kletskoppen Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/8 ounces butter
- 3.5 ounces light brown sugar
- 1.5 tablespoons milk
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/8 ounces raw almonds
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove the skin from the almonds. Bring a little bit of water to a boil, add the raw almonds and cook them for 1 minute. Drain the almonds immediately in a colander and rinse them with cold water. Dry them with a paper towel. Remove the skin with your finger. Allow them to dry completely. When dry, pulse them a few times in your food processor. Pulse them fine, but not into flour. You still want small pieces in your cookies.
- Mix butter, sugar and milk. Add cinnamon, salt, almonds and mix again. Add flour and mix.
- Transfer batter into a piping bag and pipe small ball of dough onto the prepared baking dish. Place them far apart because they will flatten out completely. Yields about 15-20 cookies.
- Bake the cookies 5-10 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking dish for a few minutes and when they become harder, transfer them to a rack to cool completely.
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