Neschenka

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 525 g wheat flour
• 200 g sugar
• 100 g honey
• 250 ml milk
• 60 ml oil
• 1 packet of baking powder
• 1 packet of vanilla sugar
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 egg white
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 egg white
• 3 tsp water
• 300 g powdered sugar

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 4 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 5 hours 45 minutes

Russian Christmas cookies

Mix the sugar and 225g of flour in a bowl. Bring the milk and honey to a boil and pour into the bowl. Mix everything together. Let cool. Sift the remaining flour with the baking powder and add to the dough along with the oil, vanilla sugar, salt, egg whites, and egg yolks. Mix everything together well to form a smooth, not too stiff dough. Add a little more flour if necessary. The honey will make the dough a little sticky, but that’s okay. Cover and let rest in a cool place for 3 hours. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to a thickness of about 3-4mm and cut out any shapes you like. This will yield about 110-130 cookies, which, depending on the size of the cutter, will fill about 3-4 baking trays. Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake in a preheated oven at 190°C (top/bottom heat) or 170°C (fan oven) for about 12 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack. For the icing, combine the egg whites and water in a bowl with the sifted powdered sugar until smooth. Spread a thin layer of icing over the cookies and let them dry. Tip: For Christmas, it’s best to use Christmas-themed cookie cutters, but these cookies are also delicious at other times of the year.