Sandbakkels ~ A Norwegian Cookie {Secret Recipe Club}

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My favorite time of the month….Secret Recipe Club time! I know I tell you every month, but it really never gets old. I seriously love getting my blog assignment! It’s like Christmas time every month. I LOVE surprises, and I LOVE pouring over my assigned blog getting to know a new to me blogger. And scouring through her recipes is kinda like getting to pour through someone’s cookbooks and cooking notes. I feel like a voyeur. Does that make any sense?

I always find at least 5 to 8 recipes that I can’t wait to try, and I have to say the hardest part of all is trying to narrow it down to one. I promise one day I won’t be able to do it, and you’ll be here staring at two or three recipes because I couldn’t settle on just one. Would that be okay? I’m not quite sure if that would break club rules or not.

This month I had the great pleasure of getting to know Rhonda over at The Kitchen Witch. I have to say she is one of the most interesting food bloggers I’ve had a chance to read. Where to start? Like me, she’s a Veteran. I was Navy, she’s retired Air Force but also grew up a Navy brat. She had the chance to live in Germany, but now lives in Great Falls, Montana. I’ve never been to that area of the country, but I hear it’s beautiful and I can’t wait to one day travel all over our beautiful country. She’s also an avid motorcycle rider!

I really can’t do the introduction justice, so you just have to click over and check out a pic of Rhonda on her bike. She also explains the origins of a “Kitchen Witch” and what it is. It was new to me, and a very interesting European custom. Another neat tidbit is that her daughter is the one who sparked her interest in food blogging. And like me Rhonda is addicted to Google Reader. I love, love, love having all the blogs I read organized into one place! Love it!!

The recipe I chose this month was Sandbakkels. You know I’m always intrigued in recipes from another country. The name alone pulled me in. It turns out that Sandbakkels are a traditional Norwegian Christmas cookie similar to shortbread. The dough is pressed into tin molds and baked so they take on unique shapes. It is quite the Scandinavian tradition which I definitely couldn’t do justice because I didn’t have the tins. I debated trying to find and buy them in time for this post, or just using another recipe since I didn’t have them.

But in the end I couldn’t resist just making them right then and there. I decided to flatten them into discs like a gingersnap, and spreading them with Lingonberry jam that I bought from Ikea! You know keeping with the Scandinavian flair and all. The icing on the cake or should I say cookie, was when I realized the cute little dish I was eating them off of was made in Norway. That was so cool in and of itself that I decided they must be photographed on said dish. I should’ve taken a picture of the dish alone for you to see. I’ll try to remember to share it on Instagram if you’re interested.

You MUST try these cookies. They are super easy, and SO good! Don’t wait until Christmas although you’ll definitely want to bookmark this recipe and add them to your Christmas cookie list. I’m super interested in getting my hands on these tins which we can probably find them online. Oh yeah, and make sure you click over and check out Rhonda’s pictures of the Sandbakkels in the cute tins. I have a new blog to add to my Google Reader, and I’m sure you will too. Happy Reading!!

Sandbakkels ~ A Norwegian Cookie {Secret Recipe Club}
Author: 
Recipe type: Cookies, Dessert, Christmas
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 48 cookies
 
A traditional Norwegian Christmas shortbread type of a cookie that's baked in tins.
Ingredients
  • 2 sticks butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 Tbsp brown sugar (I used extra ¼ cup)
  • 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1 egg
  • ½ tsp pure vanilla
  • ½ tsp sea salt
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (I used extra ¼ cup)
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. In mixer, cream together butter and all sugars.
  3. Add in egg, vanilla and salt. Mix well.
  4. Add in flour and mix until just combined.
  5. Roll into a good sized ball and place on ungreased cookie sheet.
  6. When all cookies are on the sheet, flatten each ball with a sugared bottom of a glass till flat.
  7. Bake 8 to 10 minutes until done keeping a close eye.
  8. Cool on baking sheet on a cooling rack.
  9. Eat them topped with jam of choice (mine was Lingonberry from Ikea). I also topped them with homemade whipped cream and then added the jam on top of that.
  10. *** If you have the Sandbakkel tins, press into tins to bake and bake for 10-13 minutes. Cool in tins for 5 minutes and turn upside down to tap out. Fill with jam or lemon curd, topping of choice. ***
  11. CALORIE COUNT: Each cookie is 65 calories if made in the method I made.

** Recently I’ve learned that a few of my friends have never been to Ikea!! If you’ve never been, it’s a life experience not to be missed. Make sure you click on my IKEA link above to read about one of my visits there. I share in photos! Have you been?? **

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9 Responses to Sandbakkels ~ A Norwegian Cookie {Secret Recipe Club}

  1. Ooh, this looks intriguing!! Very fancy and they look fantastic! Great choice!
    Debbi Does Dinner Healthy recently posted..Popovers

  2. Melissa says:

    What a delicious looking cookie. I bet it’s great with all kinds of toppings. Great SRC choice!

  3. Rhonda says:

    Denise, as soon as I saw a post on Sandbakkels I knew that was from my site. We definitely have some things in common. Thanks for the great intro, you make me sound much more interesting than I am. It was really clever of you to press the cookies out, I guess I’ve had them all my life one certain way so I don’t think out of the box. Now you got me thinking about using it as a tart crust. Then to top it all off you used the lingonberry jam, could that be more perfect? Nice job!
    Rhonda recently posted..‘Dad’s Pizza Dough’ topped with Goose Prosciutto, Goat Cheese, Brussels Sprout & Roasted Garlic Sauce

  4. Rhonda says:

    Oh and I forgot to tell you that I have an infatuation with the color blue in my kitchen; blue walls, blue tiles, blue and white dishes…just another thing it seems we have in common (based on your header photos).
    Rhonda recently posted..‘Dad’s Pizza Dough’ topped with Goose Prosciutto, Goat Cheese, Brussels Sprout & Roasted Garlic Sauce

  5. Looks delicious! Great SRC choice!
    Lisa {AuthenticSuburbanGourmet} recently posted..Lemon Scented Olive Oil Cookies | Secret Recipe Club

  6. The area I grew up in (Minnesota) had some wonderful Norwegian and Scandinavian bakers and I always looked forward to sampling their desserts — sandbakkels, krumkake, and lefse. My heritage is Czech, but I don’t recall a particular cookie tradition — mostly breads and kolaches, although my Grandma always made gingersnaps. 🙂 So neat that your jam and serving plate tied into your cookie post!
    Kim Bultman | a little lunch recently posted..A Foodie Love Story (Cheeseburger Stuffed Baked Potatoes)

  7. SeattleDee says:

    I haven’t made these in years, maybe decades, and never thought to press them into a disk. Brilliant time saver, and every bit as tasty. Loved the post.
    SeattleDee recently posted..Drop Biscuits with Cheese & Chives

  8. These look very yummy! Very light…I bet I would eat the whole batch myself. I am sure other toppings would work also. We are definitely going to give these a try. Thanks for sharing!
    Mike @ Webakecookies.com recently posted..Rolo Stuffed Sugar Cookies

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