This is one of my favourites for Christmas.

We call it Magenbrot, a type of German Gingerbread, and you’ll find it at every Christmas Market across the country and also at other fairs like Oktoberfest.

The name literally translates to ‘stomach bread’. And similar to Digestives, those were meant to support your digestion because of the spices they contain. So no excuse not to eat them I’d say …

The recipe is really simple to make but they’re oh-so-delicious and soft! They become even more flavourful if you leave them to rest for about a week.

By the way, they also go very well with a mug of mulled wine or hot chocolate!

Happy Baking!

Ingredients

For the dough

50g butter (room temperature)

5 tbsp strong espresso (room temperature)

250g flour

1 tbsp cacao powder

2½ tsp baking powder

100g sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp all-spice

1 egg

salt

For the glaze

250g sugar

½ tbsp cacao powder

Makes about 50 pieces

Method

Dough

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (fan 160°C) and line a baking tray with baking parchment.

2. For the dough - sieve the flour, cacao and baking powder into a bowl.

3. Add the sugar, spices, egg, espresso, a pinch of salt and the butter (cut into small pieces). Combine into a firm dough.

4. Lightly dust a surface with flour.

5. Divide the dough into 4 portion sizes and form each into a log (about 30 cm in length).

6. Place the logs onto the baking tray and bake for about 15 min.

7. Set aside to cool for 10 min.

8. Cut the logs at a diagonal into pieces of about 2.5 cm.

9. Let them cool completely.

Glaze

1. For the glaze - place the sugar and cacao in a saucepan. Add 125 ml of water and bring to a boil. Cook for about 7 min. on medium to high heat.

2. Reduce the heat and carefully dip the gingerbread into the glaze to cover them fully.

3. Set aside to let the glaze dry.