Advent is the time for Christmas cookies. There is no other time of year when people are baking more cookies. Even though you could bake many of those cookies any other day as well. I wouldn’t mind if someone served me a few of these delicious Xmas Wreath Cookies with my coffee at the height of summer. They are delicious all year round. Some people might say the decorations are too »Christmassy« for July or August. But who cares? ;P
As a diabetic, I always have to keep an eye on what I eat. In theory, I can eat anything, but some foods can cause problems. First and foremost, of course, anything with too much sugar added. That’s why I like to fall back on sugar-free or sugar-reduced alternatives – or I come up with something at home without added sugar. This Strawberry Vanilla Jam is made with (almost) no added sugar. Great, if you want to eat less of that white stuff ;P
The name for these little sweet delights could cause some confusion I think. They are called »Spandauer«. Spandauer with Marzipan, Vanilla Custard and Raspberry Jam to be precise. The name Spandauer refers to a district in Berlin but these fellas are not German. Not at all. You could almost say »something is rotten in the state of Denmark« ;P
Germany is not the place for Halloween and everything connected to it. Some celebrate it with parties but the good old »trick or treat«, that is common in the US, is pretty much non-existent here. I am not really that much into Halloween parties either, but I absolutely love to bake spooky stuff ;P These little Halloween Ghost PB&J Chocolate Sandwich Cookies might not be super spooky but definitely something cute you can bake as a snack for Halloween.
Some of you might know this — Linzer Augen Sandwich Cookies are actually Christmas cookies here in Germany and some other countries. We also call them »Hildabrötchen« or »Spitzbuben«. The name depends on the region these cookies are made and served I think. Mine here turned out quite a bit larger than the ones you know from Christmas. Similar extra large cookies like these here are often sold in bakeries. All year round. If you serve them this big, they are more like little cakes instead of cookies. Great with a cup of tea or coffee ;P
Many of you know our German “Angel Eyes” probably as “thumbprint cookies” – classic Christmas cookies all over the world. Usually, these cookies are quite bulky with a blob of jam on top. These Meringue Angel Eyes here are a little different. Instead of a ball of dough that got an indention to keep the jam filling, these cookies here are light and the jam filling is inside a ring of meringue. Similar, yet quite different ;P
I love my job, but in between I love to bake and try new things in the kitchen. A lot of my friends and colleagues encourage me to bake - for a very simple reason: they get the leftovers - and it seems they like it most of the time ;) 
