The snow continues its graceful decent from above – large flakes producing a thick, white blanket as far as the eye can see. It’s a winter wonderland and today is the last day of any work and school obligations before celebrations truly take hold. With only a few days to go before juleaften, I wanted to share one more favorite baked good with you: serinakaker.
Revered by many, serinakaker are one of the traditional Norwegian cookies served during jul (Christmas). These buttery cookies are like a cross between shortbread and sugar cookies – rich and delicate. Their simple nature disguising their incredible flavor. Each small cookie is topped with a sprinkling of sugar and almonds that roast so slightly as they bake in the oven. With so few days left before jul, it’s nice to know there are still simple and delicious cookies you can throw together and share with your loved ones.
You might wish to double the batch since these cookies can easily be devoured.
Serinakaker
(Makes about 30 cookies)
Cookies:
- 2 cups plus 1 tablespoon (250 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons vanilla sugar or vanilla essence/extract
- 2/3 cup (150 g) butter, room temperature
- 1 large egg, beaten
Topping:
- 1 egg white, beaten
- Pearl sugar (or sparkling sugar)
- Sliced or chopped almonds
Pre-heat the oven to 375 °F / 190 °C. Have two baking sheets with parchment paper ready.
In a large bowl or mixer, combine the flour, baking powder, and vanilla sugar. Add the butter and cream everything together. Add in the sugar and beaten egg (and vanilla essence, if using instead of vanilla sugar) and combine to form a good dough.
Roll out the dough into a long sausage and divide into approximately 30 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a smooth ball and gently press down on the top of each with the back of a fork, creating a pattern.
Brush each cookie with the beaten egg white and sprinkle with pearl sugar and almonds, using as much or as little as desired.
Divide the cookies among the baking sheets and bake one sheet at a time in the middle of the oven for 10-12 minutes, until golden.
Store in a cookie tin for a couple of weeks and enjoy!
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The cookies sound so delicious. Just wondering if I could actually stir the almonds into the cookies instead of putting on top.
I certainly don’t see why not if you prefer mixing them in – it might give a slightly different flavoring since the nuts will be baked inside the dough. Enjoy!
Those look awesome!!! Thank you for posting this recipe!
These remind me of the sugar cookies I made for Christmas. You have a lovely blog, thank you for sharing all of the recipes and beautiful photos.
Thank you, Jamie! 🙂
Can you substitute almond flour to make these keto?
Hi Rosanna. I have only made these with all-purpose flour, so I’m not sure how almond flour would affect the overall result. If you do try making them with almond flour, let me know as I would be curious how they turn out!
Is vanilla essence the same as vanilla extract?
You can use vanilla extract
Where do you buy vanilla sugar or vanilla essence ??
You can use vanilla extract
My dog is nothing but a big pile of crumbled flour with butter I cannot form it it doesn’t stick together and I Followed the directions to a T. What am I missing
Hi Suzanne, I’m sorry your dough is not sticking together! It’s so hard to say what could be the issue without being there with you. Did you include the egg? Was the butter room temperature (softened) – if it’s too cold it will not bind properly with the flour. I’d go back and check the amounts again one last time. Hope this helps!
Hello! I had the same problem today…followed the recipe exactly and I was so excited for these! 🙂 can we add milk or a little bit of water to get the dough less dry and crumbly?
I would add more softened butter 🙂
It says to add the cream in but I can’t fin cream in the ingredients! Help!!!
Hi! No cream in the recipe, you just need to “cream together” the butter and the other dry ingredients. In other words, blend them together 🙂
Have you ever tried wrapping the roll of dough (before you cut the cookies) in waxed paper and freezing it so you could bake at a later time? My mom did this with oatmeal cookie dough, and it was great to be able to pull out and quickly have fresh cookies.
Takk!
My mother used to do this too, it’s a great way to bake a little at a time!