Pepper Nuts cookie help

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AllenOK

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Ok, here's the recipe I have:

Pepper Nuts
Yields: about 9 dz cookies

3 eggs
¼ c dark brown sugar, packed tightly
¾ c white sugar
zest of one lemon
1 T finely minced citron (optional)
1 T finely minced candied orange peel (optional)
½ c grated blanched almonds
2 ½ c flour, approximately
1 t baking powder
1 t cinnamon
½ t ground cloves
½ t ground allspice
¼ t powdered cardamom
½ t finely ground black pepper
rum, brandy, or arrack
Confectioner’s sugar or white sugar glaze

Beat the eggs with both sugars until mixture is very thick and almost white. Add lemon rind, fruit, peel, and almonds and mix well. Sift flour with baking powder and spices and stir into egg mixtures. Knead on a floured board until smooth. Shape into long rolls about 1” in diameter and cut into ½” to ¾” slices. Arrange on 3 or 4 large buttered cookie sheets and let dry uncovered in a cool room or refrigerator overnight. Just before baking, turn over each cookie and sprinkle with rum, brandy, or arrack. Bake for about 20 minutes. Roll each cookie in confectioner’s sugar while warm, or let cool and ice. These cookies last for weeks if stored in an airtight container.

I haven't actually baked them yet, as they're still in my fridge drying. I've got to process some fresh chicken stock for freezing, then I'll bake the cookies.

A couple things I've noticed:
1) There is no baking temp indicated in the recipe. I'm going to assume 350°F.
2) When I rolled the dough in preparation for cutting the cookies, I noticed that the dough was rather soft, and didn't cut very well.
3) 9 dozen! Yeah right! I got about 3 dz out of this. I may not have rolled the dough into a small enough cylinder.

Now, the recipe didn't call for me to chill the dough any. I'm pretty sure that if I had chilled the dough, covered, I could have sliced some very nice cookies out of it, especially if I had kept rinsing the knife off with hot water when it started to stick. Also, unflavored dental floss works good, as I use both of these techniques when I'm cutting cheese for cheese displays at work. Unfortunately, we're fresh out of dental floss!

What are your thoughts? Should I have chilled the dough, then sliced? Would I have achieved a thinner cookie? Or will the dental floss work?

I'll post results of my cookies after I bake them in a little while. Wish me luck!
 
Ok, first batch is out of the oven and cooling, second batch is in the oven now.

Results:
A mildly spicy/sweet cookie, a little milder than a gingersnap. I dusted them with powdered sugar, like a Mexican Wedding Cookie would be.
I think the time/temperature is right on, as the cookies were just starting to get crispy/hard around the edges, while soft in the center.
They didn't rise much, or spread out, so I am able to really pack them onto cookie sheet.
I didn't have any booze to sprinkle on them, so I omitted that step.
 
Allen, the day was great that I first tasted a BLACK PEPPER POUND CAKE. Thanks for this putting BLACK PEPPER in cookies. Its also great in ICE CREAM although I don't have that recipe. I will try yours. I'll post the pound cake later.

I probably would have chilled your dough for at least 6 hours before slicing but glad it turned out ok.
 
here's my husband's Swedish Grandmother's recipe (dough chilled - temp 375)

Peppernuts

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temp
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
1/4 cup sorghum molasses
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon freshly ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Cream butter and sugar. Add the egg and molasses.
In another bowl, mix the flour with the baking powder, soda, and spices.
Blend the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture.
Shape the dough into a ball.
Wrap the dough in wax paper and chill (at least overnight, & for up to a week!).
Cut off a piece of the dough and roll between your hands and a floured board to make ropes about 1/2-inch thick and about as long as a pencil.
Place some of the ropes (5-6?) on an ungreased cookie sheet.
Cut ropes into 1/2-inch pieces using a sharp knife. Separate pieces.
Bake for 8-10 mins. till the cookies are golden.
Remove from the oven; cool on the baking sheet.

(you can place portions in freezer bags for up to a month then thaw overnight in the refrigerator)

Good Luck!
 
Pfeffernusse Cookies
from my Norwegian gramma.

3 eggs
½ c butter
2 c brown sugar
3 T strong black coffee
6 c flour
2 t baking powder
½ t salt
½ t white pepper
1 t black pepper
½ t nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice
1 T cinnamon
¼ teaspoon anise extract

Beat soft butter and sugar until blended. Add eggs one at a time to incorporate. Put in coffee and anise extract. Sift flour with the baking powder, salt and spices. Alternately add the egg mix to the flour mix until blended. Roll into a long 2" rope and put in frig for 2 hours. When ready to assemble, butter a cookie pan. Slice them about ¼" and lay them on the cookie sheet. Let sit on the sheet overnight to dry out. Bake at 325°for 18-20 minutes.
Great as a dipper for coffee or tea.
 
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