The Christmas countdown is on!

For many, this means getting the decoration out. For me, this means getting my apron on and starting my baking production line.

Yes, we Germans do love our Christmas biscuits. The more the merrier!

I came across this particular recipe a couple of years ago whilst browsing through my mum’s old recipe books. She used to bake them as a kid at school and had totally forgotten about them.

The flavour combination convinced me straight away, so I gave it a try. And, I wasn’t disappointed.

It’s nutty with a hint of chocolate and the orange jam makes it slightly tangy as well. Just spot on.

I’ve made them a couple of times since. Instead of walnuts, you can also use hazelnuts or almonds. Or a combination.

Happy Baking!

Ingredients

For the dough

500g flour

4 tsp baking powder

4 eggs

4 tbsp milk

150g sugar

lemon zest

vanilla essence (to taste)

salt

For the filling

100g walnuts

20g dark chocolate

baking powder

30g panko breadcrumbs

125 ml single cream

100g orange jam

orange zest

almond essence (to taste)

icing sugar

Makes about 30 cookies

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C (fan 200°C) and line 2 large baking trays with baking parchment.

Filling

1. For the filling - chop the walnuts and the chocolate.

2. In a saucepan combine the panko breadcrumbs with the single cream and a pinch of baking powder.

3. Add the walnuts, chocolate, orange jam, orange zest and almond essence. Carefully heat the mixture whilst stirring until it comes away from the bottom.

4. Set aside to cool.

Dough

1. For the dough - in a bowl mix the dry ingredients. Flour, baking powder, sugar, lemon zest with a pinch of salt.

2. In a small jar combine the milk with the eggs and vanilla essence.

3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones and combine them into a dough.

4. Lightly dust a surface with flour. Roll out the dough to about 5mm in thickness.

5. Cut into circles using a cookie cutter (8 cm) or glass.

6. Place 1 tsp of filling onto a circle and fold over to form a crescent. Make sure to firmly stick together the edges of the dough to keep the filling inside.

7. Place on the baking tray and bake for about 15 min.

8. Whilst still warm, dust them with icing sugar.