Berlinerkranser – A love letter to my Grandma

I haven’t posted enough recently.  There are a lot of reasons for that.  This is not a great post for a blog about getting fit but that’s okay.  Sometimes food is about more than nutrition.  Sometimes it is about emotion, and memory, and honor.  This is a post about food that feeds something more than just the body.

My Grandmother passed away on Monday.  She was 95-years-old and lived a long and amazing life.  She walked around the lake near her condo every day until she lost her sight.  She also played bridge and did crosswords.  These simple things helped her live well much longer than most.
She inspired me with her grace, compassion, and love.  She inspired me with her education.  Mother of three, she also worked full-time as a teacher, guidance counselor, and principal throughout the years.  She inspired me with her cookies.  Norwegian cookies that still have to be baked every December before it can truly feel like Christmas.

Each year my Mom and I set aside a day to bake her cookies.  Many of my cousins aren’t the baking types, I am.  Mom has warned me that I have inherited the task of cookies.  It’s more precious to me than any heirloom.

Grandma’s burial and service are tomorrow and while there will be plenty of food, I wanted to remember her the best way I know how…in cookies.  This is the first time I’ve tried baking the Norwegian cookies without my Mom, and it shows.  They turned out a little uglier and a little more crumbly than usual.  But hey, I have 63 more years in which to get it right if I follow in Grandma’s footsteps.

No one knows that I’ve baked these and I’m terrified to bring them to Grandma’s adoring fans.  They aren’t quite right, they aren’t quite hers.  Then again, no tribute is quite the same as the original, it is merely an ode to, not a copy of.  At least this ode is delicious.

Grandma, this is my buttery, sugary, messy love letter to you.

–Berlinerkranser–

• 2 raw egg yolks
• 2 hard-boiled egg yolks
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup butter
• 2 cups flour
• Egg whites (for topping)
• Pearl Sugar (for topping) (Available in a fair few grocery stores, and IKEA)

The original instructions:

“Work well together the raw and hard boiled egg yolks. Add the sugar. Work in the butter alternating with the flour to form a smooth dough. Rollinto long roll with the hands. Cut this in about 30 pieces. Then form eachpiece into a little roll. Make a circle of each roll, crossing the ends. Dip each into slightly beaten egg whites, then into coarse sugar. Bake a delicate brown 10 to 15 minutes at 300 F.”

My slightly modified version:

1. Mash together the raw and hard egg yolks into a smooth paste.
2. Add the sugar and mix/mash together
3. Alternate working in the butter and flour until you have a smooth dough.  (I recommend chilling at this point as the warmth of your hands will all but melt the buttery dough when you get to the next step)
4. Roll dough into a long, thin log.  Cut into small pieces (2-3″…you have to play with it until you get the size you like)
5. Form each piece into a circle, crossing the ends.  (I recommend aiming for about 1.5″ circles)
6. Dip each cookie into lightly beaten egg white and then into pearl sugar.  (I like a light tap in the sugar, you don’t want them fully covered)
7. Bake to a delicate brown.  ***I found the original time/temp to be way too low.  I go closer to 15 minutes at 325F.

***Crossposted from Get Fit, Get Fat