The Bredele (also called Bredela, Bredle, or Winachtsbredele) are cookies or small sweets, traditionally made in Alsace (France) especially during Christmas.
The assortments are varied (over 100) and can include anise (Anisbredele), orange, cinnamon, spices, and/or honey.
It is said that the Celts and Romans who settled in Alsace offered the gods sweets similar to small bread made from flour and honey; in fact, the word Bredele comes from the German “Brot” which means bread.
The first written recipe dates back to the 1500s and is the “AnisBrod,” or “anise bread,” ancestor of the current Anisbredele.
A long tradition that includes many recipes with different variations so much so that an Alsatian saying goes that “there are as many types of Bredele as there are Alsatian families.”
The following recipe is the basic one that can be enriched with other ingredients and even with sugar glaze.
They were the stars of the ViaggiandoMangiando on air appointment on December 16, video HERE.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 15 cookies
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: French
- Seasonality: Christmas
Ingredients
- 4 cups flour
- 1 cup butter
- 1.5 cups sugar (+ for decoration)
- 2 eggs
- to taste ground cinnamon
- to taste salt
Steps
In a bowl, mix the flour and a pinch of salt.
Add sugar to softened butter. Then the eggs and mix, then incorporate into the flour, knead, and divide into two balls. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least two hours.
Work the dough on a work surface to a thickness of about 1/8 inch, then cut the cookies using cutters or freehand, sprinkle with a sugar and cinnamon mix, and bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for about 10 minutes; they should become slightly dark.
Bredele, a specialty of the French region of Alsace all to discover
