Physalis gingerbread cookies

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 420 g flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 220 g butter, soft
• 280 g sugar
• 1 tbsp beet syrup
• 2 eggs
• 1 packet of vanilla sugar
• 3 tbsp desiccated coconut
• 75 g physalis, dried
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder, unsweetened
• 3 tsp gingerbread spice

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 10 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 12 minutes; Total time approx. 52 minutes

also possible with cranberries, currants, cherries etc.

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F) with fan/convection oven. Chop the dried physalis. Mix all ingredients together and stir until combined. The dough will be very firm, like baby’s play dough. Shape the dough into small, equal-sized balls, about the size of a walnut. If you want larger cookies, make them larger. Be careful, though, as the dough will expand to about twice their size. Larger cookies will be softer in the middle. Spread the dough balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for about 12 minutes. The baking time varies depending on the size of the cookies. They’re done when the surface feels lightly baked, but the entire cookie is still soft. You’ll feel like it’s 3 minutes too soon to remove them from the oven. The cookies will harden considerably. After baking, let them cool on the sheet for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack until completely cold. This will give them a crispy surface but a soft center. If not, you may need to experiment with the baking time and temperature.