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Russian Pryaniki Spiced Honey Cookies

Russian pryaniki cookies are spiced honey cookies baked until puffed and set, then finished with a thin, smooth sugar glaze. Chilling the dough makes it firm enough to scoop into evenly sized cookies.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
cooling, chilling, and glaze setting 1 hour 45 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 24 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Russian
Calories: 162
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For the cookies
  • 0.5 cup honey
  • 0.5 cup granulated sugar
  • 6 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1 egg large
  • 3 cup all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 0.25 tsp ground cloves
  • 0.5 tsp fine salt
For the glaze
  • 1.5 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 2 tbsp water warm

Equipment

  • 2 18x13-inch rimmed baking sheets

Method
 

Prepare the dough
  1. Heat the oven to 350°F and line two 18x13-inch rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Combine the honey, granulated sugar, and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring for 3 to 5 minutes until the butter melts and the sugar mostly dissolves; do not let the mixture boil.
  3. Set the honey mixture aside to cool until just warm, about 15 minutes.
  4. Whisk the egg into the honey mixture.
  5. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt.
  6. Stir the dry mixture into the honey mixture in two additions until a soft dough forms.
  7. Cover and refrigerate the dough for 1 hour, until firm enough to scoop.
Shape and bake the cookies
  1. Scoop the dough into 24 portions, about 2 tablespoons each, roll into balls, and arrange them about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
  2. Bake both sheets for 10 to 12 minutes, switching their rack positions and rotating them front to back halfway through, until the cookies are puffed and set with lightly golden bottoms.
  3. Cool the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes.
  4. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and cool completely.
Glaze the cookies
  1. Whisk the confectioners' sugar and warm water in a small bowl until smooth.
  2. Brush a thin layer of glaze over the cooled cookies and let the glaze set for about 30 minutes.

Notes

For evenly shaped cookies, keep the dough chilled until it is firm enough to scoop. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days; baked cookies can be frozen. For a dairy-free variation, use dairy-free butter in place of the unsalted butter.