Gingerbread is an essential part of Christmas celebrations here in Germany. Without some of them lying around on the Christmas cookie plate, the holidays would not be the same. Supermarkets often start selling these delicious treats as early as September. To be honest, that’s a bit too early for us, which is why we prefer to bake our own gingerbread at home, so they are always nice and fresh. Our Mini Chocolate Gingerbread (Cookies) look like the ones from the store, but they’re freshly baked and somehow even better. Was that to be expected? Probably. ;P
The combination of typical gingerbread spices with a bit of chocolate is awesome. That’s probably why supermarkets offer a huge variety of gingerbread cookies from different manufacturers. Whether they’re simply covered with chocolate, like these here, or filled with jam, pretty much everyone takes home at least one pack of them during the holiday season. We do too. The little hearts filled with jam are just too good to not buy them. ;P
In theory, you could bake these filled hearts at home – it’s basically no different from making these mini gingerbread cookies with chocolate. Except that after baking and before coating them with chocolate, you pipe some jam into the gingerbread. Maybe we should try a recipe for that sometime…?
You don’t need much to bake gingerbread like this – perhaps a suitable baking tin, otherwise it gets tricky. ;P There’s a wide selection available online or in shops for baking supplies. Some of those silicone molds for smaller gingerbread cookies, others are for extra large gingerbread cookies. The recipe here is suitable for all sizes, but we prefer the small gingerbread cookies because they are easier to snack on. Better to have a small gingerbread cookie and a few other cookies on the side. You want to try everything that is presented to you and not only eating gingerbread…
Making mini gingerbread cookies is very easy. The batter is easy to make and the gingerbread cookies bake in no time. Thanks to the silicone mold, they come out of the molds in one piece without any problems. However, you have to be careful when coating them with chocolate. It is important to warm the chocolate very carefully and slowly. If it gets too warm, you will often end up with unsightly gray streaks on the surface after the chocolate has cooled down. This doesn’t damage the chocolate, but it doesn’t look very pretty. So either heat it carefully in a double boiler or in several short intervals in the microwave.
If you prefer to bake classic Nuremberg gingerbread, also known as Elisenlebkuchen (which do not contain flour), we also have a recipe for that. Our Mini Elisenlebkuchen aka. Gingerbread Cookies from Nuremberg are also slightly smaller than the usual gingerbread cookies. We just really like small bites. ;P
If you like the taste of gingerbread but want to try something completely different, you might want to check out our Gingerbread Cupcakes. Classic gingerbread spice is used in the batter for the cupcakes, giving them their typical Christmas flavors.
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
(16-18 small gingerbread cookies)
For the gingerbread:
a bit of oil for greasing the molds
1 cup (120g) spelt flour
1/4 cup (50g) brown sugar
1 tbsp. cocoa powder
2 tsp. gingerbread spice
1 tsp. baking powder
1 pinch of salt
3 oz. (85g) maple syrup (or honey)
2.4 fl. oz. (70ml) oat drink (or milk)
1 tbsp. sunflower oil
For the chocolate glaze:
about 4.6 oz. (130g) semi-sweet chocolate*
1 1/2 tsp. coconut oil*
(16-18 kleine Lebkuchen)
Für die Lebkuchen:
etwas Öl zum Einfetten der Form
120g Dinkelmehl (Type 630)
50g brauner Zucker
1 EL Kakaopulver
2 TL Lebkuchengewürz
1 TL Backpulver
1 Prise Salz
85g Ahornsirup (oder Honig)
70ml Haferdrink (oder Milch)
1 EL Sonnenblumenöl
Für die Schokoladenglasur:
etwa 130g Zartbitterschokolade*
1 1/2 TL Kokosöl*
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. Preheat the oven to 160°C (320°F) fan-forced. Lightly grease a silicone mold for small gingerbread cookies* and set aside.
2. Combine spelt flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, gingerbread spice, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Mix the maple syrup (or honey), oat drink (or milk), and sunflower oil until well combined, then add to the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix everything well to get a smooth batter – it will be quite runny, but that is ok. If you want to make it easier for yourself, fill the batter into a piping bag to fill the silicone mold with the batter – everyone else can use spoons.
3. Pipe/spoon the batter into the silicone mold almost to the brim and bake the gingerbread cookies for about 18-20 minutes. Take out of the oven and let the gingerbread cool down in the silicone mold for a few minutes, then remove and let cool down completely on a wire rack. Repeat the process with remaining batter until everything is used up.
4. Roughly chop the chocolate (if necessary), add it together with the coconut oil to a bowl and warm it in the microwave (in several short intervals) until the chocolate has melted and looks like a smooth chocolate sauce. Dip the gingerbread cookies in the melted chocolate. Place them on a wire rack and allow the chocolate to harden completely before storing them in a well sealing cookie box.
1. Den Ofen auf 160°C (320°F) Umluft vorheizen. Eine Silikonform für kleine Lebkuchen* leicht einfetten und zur Seite stellen.
2. Dinkelmehl, braunen Zucker, Kakao, Lebkuchengewürz, Backpulver und Salz in einer großen Schüssel gut vermischen. Ahornsirup (oder Honig), Haferdrink (oder Milch) und Sonnenblumenöl verrühren, dann zur Schüssel mit den trockenen Zutaten dazugeben und alles zu einem homogenen Teig verrühren – der Teig wird recht flüssig sein. Wer es sich einfacher machen möchte, kann den Teig jetzt in einen Spritzbeutel füllen und damit dann die Mulden der Silikonform befüllen – alle anderen nehmen dazu Löffel.
3. Die Mulden der Silikonform bis fast zum Rand befüllen und die Lebkuchen dann für etwa 18-20 Minuten backen. Aus dem Ofen holen, einige Minuten in der Form abkühlen lassen, dann vorsichtig aus der Form lösen und auf einem Kuchengitter abkühlen lassen. Den Prozess mit verbliebenem Teig wiederholen, bis alles aufgebraucht ist.
4. Die Schokolade (falls notwendig) grob hacken und dann zusammen mit dem Kokosöl in der Mikrowelle in mehreren, kurzen Intervallen erwärmen und schmelzen. Die Lebkuchen in die geschmolzene Schokolade tauchen und dann auf ein Kuchengitter setzen und die Schokolade fest werden lassen. Die Schokolade sollte komplett fest sein, bevor man die Lebkuchen in einer gut schließenden Dose aufbewahrt.
Craving more? Keep in touch on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest for new post updates and more. You can also contact me with any questions or inquiries!
Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
Print
(German) Chocolate Gingerbread
- Prep Time: 00:30
- Cook Time: 00:20
- Total Time: 02:00
- Yield: 16 1x
- Category: Christmas Cookies
- Method: -
- Cuisine: Germany
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
A popular sweet treat around Christmas – Gingerbread with Chocolate Coating. A family favorite that’s easy to bake. We love it!
Ingredients
For the gingerbread:
a bit of oil for greasing the molds
1 cup (120g) spelt flour
1/4 cup (50g) brown sugar
1 tbsp. cocoa powder
2 tsp. gingerbread spice
1 tsp. baking powder
1 pinch of salt
3 oz. (85g) maple syrup (or honey)
2.4 fl. oz. (70ml) oat drink (or milk)
1 tbsp. sunflower oil
For the chocolate glaze:
about 4.6 oz. (130g) semi-sweet chocolate*
1 1/2 tsp. coconut oil*
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 160°C (320°F) fan-forced. Lightly grease a silicone mold for small gingerbread cookies* and set aside.
2. Combine spelt flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, gingerbread spice, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Mix the maple syrup (or honey), oat drink (or milk), and sunflower oil until well combined, then add to the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix everything well to get a smooth batter – it will be quite runny, but that is ok. If you want to make it easier for yourself, fill the batter into a piping bag to fill the silicone mold with the batter – everyone else can use spoons.
3. Pipe/spoon the batter into the silicone mold almost to the brim and bake the gingerbread cookies for about 18-20 minutes. Take out of the oven and let the gingerbread cool down in the silicone mold for a few minutes, then remove and let cool down completely on a wire rack. Repeat the process with remaining batter until everything is used up.
4. Roughly chop the chocolate (if necessary), add it together with the coconut oil to a bowl and warm it in the microwave (in several short intervals) until the chocolate has melted and looks like a smooth chocolate sauce. Dip the gingerbread cookies in the melted chocolate. Place them on a wire rack and allow the chocolate to harden completely before storing them in a well sealing cookie box.
Notes
Time to get your hands dirty in the kitchen!
Links marked with an asterisk (*) are affiliate links (advertising/Werbung) to Amazon Germany. If you click on one of those links and buy something via this link, I will get a commission for that sale. The price of whatever you buy is not affected in any way by this.
