The Springerle Cowl test knit is finished and ready for release! The Springerle Cowl features basic decreases and yarn overs to create the feel of pressed cookies on a background of reverse stockinette. I named it Springerle for the traditional cookies our family makes every year at the holidays. In the final edits, one of the test knitters suggested I include my family recipe for the cookies. So here it is!
Springerle Recipe
Ingredients:
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 large eggs
- 4 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 20 anise oil drops (1/2 to 1 bottle) or more to taste
Instructions:
Sift the flour and soda together. Beat the eggs until light. Gradually add in the powdered sugar. Beat until completely combined (this can take up to 15 minutes). Stir in anise oil. Add 3/4 of the flour mixture and beat on low speed until combined. (Tip: At some point you will want to turn off the mixer and switch to stirring in with a spoon. I found this out the hard way when I burned up a mixer motor one year.) Stir in remaining flour. Divide into thirds. Roll out flat. Cut into cookies (or use a traditional springerle rolling pin pictured above to press into cookies) and place on wax paper. Cover cookies and let stand at least 3 hours. (Tip: The original recipe said to let the cookies stand 6 hours to overnight but we never wait that long and have good results.) Arrange cookies so they do not touch on greased cookie sheets. Bake in a 300 degree over for about 13-15 minutes or until a straw color. Transfer cookies to cooling rack and allow to cool briefly then store in an air tight container to maintain softness. (Tip: If you notice your cookies start to harden, you can add apple slices or commercial bread to the container to help keep them soft.)
My paternal great-grandmother used to make springerles every year. It was a tradition her family brought with them from Germany. When she passed away, my mom tracked down the recipe and started making them as a special treat for the extended family to keep the tradition alive. Now I make them with my boys and it has become one of our favorite holiday traditions. We’ve made these cookies every year since the boys have been old enough to reach the counter standing on chairs. Our recipe has slightly morphed from the original recipe my great-grandmother used with the biggest difference being that she baked the cookies to crisp and we keep them soft.
Anise seed. 
Star anise.
The licorice taste of the anise oil in the cookies is something that people tend to either love or hate. Obviously, we love it now but it was an acquired taste for one of my boys. We almost had to stop baking springerles the year the the older boy got interested in chemical properties and found that in extremely large doses the essential oil anethole (derived from anise seed) can be considered a poison. Then we did the math and realized that a boy-sized person would need to eat something crazy like hundreds of cookies a day for several days to hit the dangerous level. So our cookie tradition was saved.
I included a picture of star anise in the knitting pattern because the knitted texture reminds me of this shape (and it was where I found my inspiration for this design). But to be exact, the recipe actually uses anise oil derived from anise seed that is Mediterranean or Egyptian in origin and not from star anise that originates in China. They both have a similar licorice taste but the slightly more bitter and herbaceous taste of star anise lends itself more to savory than sweet.
In searching back through my photos, I realized that I didn’t take one last year. I’m definitely going to fix that this year! This is the last one I can find from 2017.
