Aniseed Christmas cookies – a festive treat!

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About this Recipe

Cooking Time

10

Prep Time

50

Cuisine

  • Australian

Serves

6

cooking style

Oven

PROTEIN / DIET

EGG

Part of the magic of a recipe from the 1800s is that it does not contain very much sugar. The cloying sugary overkill I often associate with sugar cookie cutouts is absent here. While they are still a sweet treat, the balance is just right with a mellow, buttery bite of delicate vanilla, followed by the faint crunch of seeds and the refreshing echoes of anise. After a holiday meal, give me a cup of tea, or one of these cookies, and I will be filled with contentment. Did you know that aniseed seeds are very helpful in aiding digestive issues and upset stomachs? You can read more about this wonderful spice here.

I love these cookies plain, but they certainly look more festive with a little icing, and you could decorate them with silver or gold balls for an added flair.

frosted anise cookies ideal for xmas

Ingredients

  • 60g butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tsp cream of tartar
  • 1 tsp baking soda, dissolved in 2 tbsp water
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 cups flour (plus a little extra for rolling out the dough)
  • 3 tsp Anise Seed Whole
  • ICING
  • 15g butter, room temperature
  • 2 cups icing sugar
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 120g butter, room temperature
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 6 eggs
  • 2 tsp cream of tartar
  • 2 tsp baking soda, dissolved in 4 tbsp water
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 6 cups flour (plus a little extra for rolling out the dough)
  • 6 tsp Anise Seed Whole
  • ICING
  • 30g butter, room temperature
  • 4 cups icing sugar
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 pinch salt

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Method

  1. To make the cookies:
    Cream the butter and sugar together, and then mix in the eggs, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. (The mixture is creamed when the color changes to a lighter cream colour).
    Add the flour, mixing until just combined, and then the anise seeds, mixing until they are more or less evenly distributed throughout the dough. Cover and refrigerate the dough for an hour or more.
  2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Flour a surface and your rolling pin and roll the dough out to about 1/4 of an inch.
    Cut cookies out using the cookie cutter of your choice, and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
    Bake for about 10 minutes, or until cookies are slightly puffed up and have turned a light golden color around the edges.
  3. Frosting optional:
    While the cookies cool, make the frosting: cream together the butter and powdered sugar. Mix in the vanilla and salt and add the milk a little bit at a time, halting once you’ve reached a smooth, spreadable consistency.

Notes

  1. Alternative cooking methods
  2. Substitutes
  3. Links to paired recipe ideas

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You have two options to access our FOTW range. We stock our new range in a series of grocers around the country. To find your nearest stockist, Click Here to visit our Find us in your favourite store page and simply enter your postcode or suburb to find a stockist closest to you.

Alternatively, you can conveniently buy online on our website. Simply follow the respective links on the Shop tab.

You have two options to access our FOTW range. We stock our new range in a series of grocers around the country. To find your nearest stockist, Click Here to visit our Find us in your favourite store page and simply enter your postcode or suburb to find a stockist closest to you.

Alternatively, you can conveniently buy online on our website. Simply follow the respective links on the Shop tab.

You have two options to access our FOTW range. We stock our new range in a series of grocers around the country. To find your nearest stockist, Click Here to visit our Find us in your favourite store page and simply enter your postcode or suburb to find a stockist closest to you.

Alternatively, you can conveniently buy online on our website. Simply follow the respective links on the Shop tab.

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