Peppernut cookies (pepernoten)

St Nicolas, patron of children, sailors and the city of Amsterdam, arrives by boat from Spain with his white horse and his helpers – chimney sweeps – called Petes to assist him. It is a busy time for St Nick, crossing the roofs with his horse while the Petes take the presents down the chimneys. Traditionally, the Petes also scatter "pepernoten" around for the kids.

Ingredients

• 250 g self-raising flour
• 125 g caster sugar
• 2 tsp speculaas spices
• pinch of salt
• 100 g cold butter, cubed
• 60 ml milk

Speculaas spices

• 30 g ground cinnamon
• 10 g ground nutmeg
• 5 g ground aniseed
• 10 g ground cloves
• 5 g white pepper
• 5 g ground coriander

Instructions

To make the speculaas, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, caster sugar, speculaas, salt and butter. Mix well. Add the milk and knead thoroughly for 5 minutes. Roll into small balls and place on baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake at 200°C for 15 minutes.

Geert Elzinga is the owner/chef of Essen Restaurant and Beer Cafe, Broadway 145, Ultimo, Sydney, [phone].

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.