136 Comments
Nadia
This look yummy!!! Do you think they will still taste good if I omit the allspice, nutmeg, and anise? Don’t have them and wanna make the cookies today…
olgak7
They won’t really taste like Pryaniki without the spices. It’s up to you, Nadia.
Natasha
Olga, can I bake them on silicone sheets instead of parchment?
olgak7
Probably. I don’t use a silicone sheet, so I don’t have any personal experience with it.
Natasha
Ok thank you. I will give it a shot, i ran out of parchment paper of course. =))
Sveta
Many of mine cracked, how would I prevent that?
olgak7
Maybe try rolling them tighter next time? I’m not sure why yours cracked, I’ve never had that happen before.
blueberry
Wow! My favorite!!! I wish i had all the ingredients at home. Can’t wait to try them! Thanks for the recipe!
Milana
Olga, probably one of my favorite holiday cookies!!! They look so perfect and so beautiful!
THANK YOU for the recipe 😉olgak7
That’s awesome, Milana! Stop by – I have some saved for you:).
Milana
Hehe, I’m eating some right this very minute 🙂 Thank you!!!!!
Bonnie Hardman
Hi Olga! Do you know what I could use for a coffee substitute in this recipe? Are the store-bought versions made with coffee?
olgak7
I don’t know if the store bought version are made with coffee or not. I don’t know what else you can substitute. I have never made them another way, Bonnie.
Ekaterina
Hi olga, I just made these and for some reason they did not end up being dense and lifted like yours but more like a regular cookie and spread out. I put in the exact ingredients and waited 4 hrs. Please help!!
olgak7
I don’t know what happened, Ekaterina. I wrote out the instructions exactly how I always do it. I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you. Maybe the batter needed to stand longer, I don’t know.
Ekaterina
I figured it out, I forgot one more cup of flour!
I added it in and let them stand and they turned out perfect. Thank you for the wonderful recipe! My husband loves them!olgak7
I’m glad you were able to figure it out, Ekaterina. Awesome!
It’s easy to miscount when you’re adding multiple cups of flour. It’s happened to me before.
Now I usually pre measure the flour into a separate bowl first, so in case I lose count, I can always redo it easily:).
Tatyana
Pryaniki!!!! Soo craving them right now! Definitely going to make them this week. Thanx for the recipe!
olgak7
You’re welcome, Tatyana! Enjoy.
Katya @ Little Broken
These bring back so many warm, fuzzy memories 🙂 I haven’t had these in so looooonnggg but pinning to make soon maybe? I think my son would love them!
olgak7
Thanks for the pin, Katya:). I hope your son will enjoy them.
Nata
Hello, just a quick question, do the cookies have to be glazed while still warm or can they all be baked and then glazed later? Also, you included a couple of suggestions for flavoring the glaze, what is your favorite way? Thanks in advance for your answer 🙂
olgak7
The cookies need to be cooled, Nata. It’s specified in the instructions.
My favorite way is not to flavor the glaze at all:). I think the Pryaniki themselves are very flavorful, so I keep it simple with the glaze. If I did add any flavoring, it would be vanilla.Nata
Thanks so much for your reply. They were so delicious I’m making them for the 2nd time 🙂 I’m running into a small problem I only have 1 cup of honey.. Should I add less flour or will it be ok?
olgak7
I would recommend making only half a batch of cookies, Nata. If you don’t use the equal amount of ingredients that are needed for the recipe, the cookies may not turn out properly.
Oksana Novikov @ Sisterhood of the Simmering Pots
These cookies bring back childhood memories. 🙂
olgak7
They sure do for me:).
Shinee
Oh, I love me some good homemade pryaniki. Yum!
olgak7
Homemade is always better:).
Tanya
They are delicious,! My mom loves store bought pryaniki but these are just to good not to share with her. Seriously delish!
Thank you!olgak7
Homemade would be a great treat for her for sure!
Evelina
Hi Olga! This pryaniki look so delicious:) I love baking, and freeze lots of things because I have lots of guests coming over… I am wondering if I can also freeze pryaniki, and if yes, should I freeze them without the glaze? Thank you
olgak7
Hi Evelina!
Did you get a chance to read the recipe post and the instructions?
I wrote specific instructions on how to freeze the Pryaniki.
“Another amazing thing about these cookies is that they are great to make ahead of time. The baked and glazed cookies store very well for at least a week or two in an airtight container and you can freeze them in an airtight container or ziptop bag for a few months. Simply thaw the cookies and they taste just as fresh as the day you made them.”
Xina
Hi Olga,
Are the cookies supposed to crumble when you bite it? Or is it supposed to be chewy? Mine is chewy and not very good. I was late in adding the baking powder. I forgot to add the baking powder together with the eggs. I only added the baking powder AFTER mixing in the flour. Please help me for my next batch. Thanks!
~Xinaolgak7
No, Xina, the Pryaniki should not crumble when you bite into them.
roxana
Hi Olga, just made them and I’m having a problem when glazing them. The glaze runs off the cookies and at the end the cookies are not covered in white, it’s transparent although I used the indicated amount of sugar. Any ideas? Thank you
Sonya
Hi Olga!
Just wanted to say thank you for posting this recipe! I have made it 6 times and it is always really popular. I love watching people’s faces when they bite into it for the first time!
I have been omitting the anise as I don’t have it but I’ll add it in next time.
I made some for my Russian language class and my tutor actually cried! She said they reminded her of the Pryaniki her grandma used to make her.
See AlsoFrozen White Chocolate Cream PuffsGluten-free Mint Chocolate BrowniesImpossible Coconut Pie Recipe | A Spicy PerspectiveI’m actually making these for Christmas gifts this year 🙂
Thank you again! They truly taste amazing!
olgak7
Wow! That’s so sweet. What a lovely comment. Thank you so much for sharing. You really made my day, Sonya.
Natalia
Olga,
Is there anything I can use instead of the coffee?olgak7
I’m not sure, Natalia. I have never made this recipe without the coffee.
Anastasia
I’ve made these and theyre seriously amazing! However, I’ve made some batter today (friday) and found that i won’t be able to put them in the oven tomorrow; will I be able to save them and put them in the oven on Sunday, two days from now?
Thank you,
Anastasia Braginskyolgak7
I’m sorry I wasn’t able to get to your question earlier, Anastasia. However, I really have never left the batter longer than the time I suggest in the recipe. I wish I could be more helpful.
Alena
Hi Olga! This is a wonderful recipe, but I have a question. When I tried making them, they all got extremely burned at the bottom. I ran out of parchment paper and used aluminum (it’s all I had). Do you think that’s why or has this ever happen with you?
Thank you
Alenaolgak7
Oh, no! I’m sorry to hear that, Alena.
I don’t think the aluminum foil should have made such a drastic change. I’ve never had the cookies even slightly burned, maybe your oven isn’t working properly? I really have no idea why the cookies burned.Elena
I have the same problem with my oven – burning at the bottom. Maybe I should use two layers of backing sheets. What will happen if I put a dish with water at the bottom of the oven?
I think coffee can be substituted with black tea. I also made gingerbread cookies and they were brown without coffee or tea.
DJ
Check your cookie sheets. I know if I use a “darker” sheet, the bottoms tend to burn. I finally bought some new T-fal airbake sheets. No more burnt bottoms.
Mary
Hi I just want to say these are so good. The only thing I did different was add a bit of lemon juice and earl grey tea for the liquid for the icing and just drizzle the icing on as I don’t like lots of sugar. I halved the recipe incase we didn’t care for it. I started the batter Monday night and made them yesterday. I got about 30 cookies and I wish I had of made the whole recipe. I will be making these again and again. Thanks 😊
olgak7
I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed the Pryaniki, Mary.
DJ
Olga,
Thank you very much for the recipe. I made these last weekend and they are definitely now one of my favorite cookies. They have a very unique taste.Next up is going to be your Apple Almond Cake.
Beka
I’m so glad i found this recipe! My best friend is Russian and i wanted to send her a surprise for christmas and this was perfect! I ended up making four batches of these, and i’m gonna have to make more just to figure out the perfect way to make gluten free ones;
My first batch i made dairy-free because of my own dietary restrictions, and because i forgot to check if we had enough honey i ended up making them with maple syrup instead, but they tasted AMAZING and they were so soft! The next batch i did make with honey and i also only glazed them on one side, and they didn’t stay as soft, so maybe glazing on both sides locks in moisture? Using almond milk for the glaze worked really well, though.
The third batch is one i’m gonna have to experiment with. I used some 1-to-1 gluten free flour (i think it’s rice based) but i think the flour was too absorbent or something because the next day the batter was so dense that it broke my cookie scoop! I think in the future i’ll experiment with only letting it sit for a few hours instead of overnight, or maybe increasing the liquid content to make up for the absorbent nature of the gluten free flour. These ones also didn’t puff up or spread out at all, they stayed mostly the same size and were pretty dry to bite into but they were still super tasty, especially when dipped in coffee or tea.
спасибо, Olga!)
Jessica
Hi! When we halve the recipe, we split everything in half, including the spices, right? So it would be 1/4 tsp? Would that be too little for 3 cups of flour?
olgak7
Spices are more or less a taste preference. Add as much or as little as you like.
Chamila Purbhoo
Olga, is powdered sugar the same as icing sugar or do I need to powder white sugar for that?
olgak7
Yes, it is the same thing.
Chamila Purbhoo
sorry to bug u olga again. Are the pryaniki cookies very sweet? I am just wondering as I badly want to try but because it will be mostly others who will eat (xmas gifts to families), I am worried they might say it’s nice but overly sweet. I usually feel “bad” when people mention something I made is too sweet. It reminds me that maybe I don’t care about the sweetness while they sure do.
olgak7
Hi Chamila,
No, I don’t think that they are overly sweet:).
Marianne Hartnack
If I leave the batter overnight, should I refrigerate it or leave it out on the counter.
olgak7
Since there are raw eggs in the batter, I would probably refrigerate the batter, Marianne.
Olga
I’m going to be honest here 🙂 I was very excited to make these, I followed the recipe, but they did not turn out that great, as far as taste 😐 I did not taste any spice, just tasted like a bland cookie 😕 Anything I could of done wrong? 🤔
olgak7
I’m sorry that you weren’t happy with the cookies, Olga. I’m not sure exactly what sort of spice/flavor you were looking for. What sort of flavor do you usually like in Pryaniki? Maybe you could add double the amount of vanilla extract, allspice, nutmeg and anise. I also suggested in the recipe instructions that you can also add cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, mint extract, etc, so maybe you could try some of those too. My taste buds must be much blander than yours:). I hope you find the recipe that you are looking for.
Carol A Twerberg
I just tried to make these. The first 20 were baked at 325 for 20 minutes, and were burnt on the bottom and hard as rocks. The second twenty were baked for ~17 minutes and were much better. The last 5 were even less than 17 and perfect.
I was disappointed because I made a half batch and only ended up with 25 cookies by using the recipe.
I didn’t have instant coffee so I made a small cup in my Keurig and only used 1\4 cup.
olgak7
I’m so sorry you weren’t satisfied with the recipe, Carol. I do my best to post the recipes and instructions as well as I can. I’m sorry that it didn’t work out for you.
However, one suggestion I would have is that by substituting brewed coffee instead of using both instant coffee and water you did not have enough liquid in the batter and that may have affected the baking time and the texture of the finished cookies. The recipe (halved) calls for 1/4 cup water AND 1/4 cup instant coffee, which would be more than just 1/4 cup in volume, which you said you used. I do have a note in the recipe, clarifying that if you use brewed coffee, you would need to use 2/3 cup (in your case, 1/3 cup, not 1/4 cup). I hope that makes sense.
Emma
Is there something that will work as a substitute for coffee??
olgak7
I don’t think so, Emma. It makes up a big portion of the cookie dough. I have never tried using anything else. I would imagine you could use another liquid in its place, but since I have never substituted anything else myself, I’m not sure what to advise.
Tami
I just made these yesterday and used 1/2 cup water, 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa and added enough instant hot cocoa mix to make 1/2 cup. Then finished the recipe as written. They turned out amazing.
olgak7
That’s awesome, Tami. Thank you for sharing. I’m so glad you enjoyed the Pryaniki.
Lucía Franco
Dear Olga! I’ve just tried this recipe in the weekend: wonderful!
Love the aroma and the taste of these wonderful cookies… Thank you very much for the indications, so easy to follow! With best regardsolgak7
I’m so happy you were so pleased with the recipe, Lucia. Thank you for taking the time to write.
Tami
Thank you so much for this recipe.. I have been trying to find a authentic Russian recipe to make for a church function. I tweaked it just a bit too fit our tastes and everyone loves it. We don’t drink coffee so my thought process instantly went to hot chocolate… I used the 1/2 cup water and added 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa and added enough hot cocoa mix to make 1/2 cup. I finished the recipe as written. The house smells like Christmas.. My son suggested adding lemon zest to the glaze. I waited until I had frosted almost all the cookies then added some zest and juice to the remainder of the glaze.. They taste amazing.. I realize by all the tweaking that it is no longer traditional but it is definitely a keeper and has made its way onto my Christmas Cookie list. Thank you agsin
Anushavan
Dear Olga, thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I enjoy making them. It’s a unique process compared with other cookies. I brought them to work this morning. Everyone loved them (especially our employees from former USSR).
I followed recipe to the letter and they turned out wonderful! I have few employees that always complain about cookies being too sweet, so I made some without glaze – they were not popular 🙂
Thank you again for very detailed recipe for a delicious cookies.
olgak7
I’m so happy you enjoyed them, Anushavan! That’s so awesome of you to share the cookies with your employees:). Thank you so much for taking the time to write.
I also don’t like when cookies are too sweet, so I usually don’t make my recipes with a lot of sugar.
Hannah
These cookies are absolutely stunning so beautifull thankyou for sharing the recipie I made the same amount gave them out to friends and family not one bad comment did I receive in fact some asked for more !
olgak7
I’m so happy you enjoyed the cookies, Hannah. You’re so thoughtful to share with your loved ones – I’m sure they must have really appreciated it.
Korinna Hansen
Looks like a great recipe. No ginger in this cookies? Is ginger optional in the Pryanikis? Thank you.
olgak7
We never add it to our Pryaniki, but you can do so if you’d like.
Marlene boulware
In the recipe it says to leave batter out at room temp for four hours or overnight. In the comments you said if leaving over night refrigerate. What should I do if leaving it overnight? Room temp or refrigerate? Can’t wait to try them.
olgak7
If you leave it out for more than 4 hours, I would refrigerate it, Marlene. I hope you enjoy the cookies.
Zuzana
Olga, I’m just making them – just a half of a volume but it seems we will have about 100 pcs. The batter tastes delicious already unbaked! But I used a filtered coffee as I had no sense for shopping 🙂 Still, so far it looks great. I’m curious what the taste will be after baking them 🙂
Zuzana
Thank you, Olga! I just made them (see http://povvi.com/en/russian-pryaniki/ ), but can’t eat them yet due fasting time. Still, great recipe!
RCW
Just made these for my library staff cookie exchange, with some festive twists! Added cinnamon/nutmeg/allspice/cloves to the batter, and enfolded a 1/2 tsp. of fig-orange jam in the center of each ball. The cookies were then topped with a powdered sugar brandy glaze (made to stream down the sides Christmas-pudding-style), and finally sprinkled with orange zest. They were very well received! Thanks for a great recipe! I sense it’ll become an annual tradition!
olgak7
I’m so glad you enjoyed the Pryaniki:). Thank you for sharing your feedback.
Walter Swrtz
Recipe looks like fun. I will definitely make these this week.
Best to you,
Walterolgak7
I hope you enjoy them, Walter.
Vita
Hi Olga,
I don’t have instant coffee, but I do have whole coffee beans that I grind myself… Do you know how much coffee should I make?
And do you know if this can be made gluten free? Could I substitute the AP flour for almond or coconut flour? If not, did you have any cookie recipes that are gluten free? Thank you!olgak7
Hi Vita,
I wrote the instructions of how much coffee you need if you brew it instead in the recipe.
“You will have about 2/3 cup very strong, almost syrupy coffee. I have never made these cookies with brewed coffee, but I imagine it would work too. However, since I haven’t personally experimented with it myself, I can’t vouch for it 100%.”
I have never tried to make Pryaniki with almond or coconut flour. I am not sure if it will work out.
I’m sorry, but I don’t think I have any gluten free cookie recipes.Vita
Thank you for your reply! I will have to keep searching. 😉 But I do love your blog, and all the recipes and tips you share with us!
olgak7
I’m so happy to hear that, Vita. I hope you find what you are looking for.
Liss
Hi Olga,
I’m going to give these a try for a Russian food theme dinner party . I see that the biscuits can be frozen ready made however, have you tried/had success with freezing and thawing the dough?
olgak7
I have never tried freezing this particular dough, Liss.
Vita
Have a very Merry Christmas! 🎄 🌟 And Happy New Year!
Amy
These cookies are perfect in every way! Followed the directions as written, added the extra spices. They are lovely. Just as I remembered! And they just continue to get better each day!
Thank you so much.
Bellser
I keep bees…. 🙂 And am very precious as to what i use their honey for as i rarely take honey from them, and leave it for them to eat over the winter as their ‘stores’… But this recipe…! Well for the first time (ever) i actually want to use their honey for baking…! This recipe combines all of my favourite flavours!
Many (many) thanks…
olgak7
I hope you enjoy the Pryaniki, Bellser. That’s wonderful that you are a beekeeper. I love that.
Lison
It is a very good recipe, very similar to my family’s recipe (just without butter).
I usually add, for half the recipe (3 cups flour) : 1 tsp star anise, 1/2 tsp green anise, 1/2 ginger, 1 tsp cinnamon and 3 whole gloves, grounded. You don’t taste the bitterness of the coffee that way.olgak7
Thank you for sharing, Lison:).
Rowena
Thanks for sharing this! I’ve been trying several recipes for pryaniki ever since seeing them mentioned in a book, but yours are the absolute best thus far. I know it’s the addition of coffee…it gives that extra “oomph” to the overall flavor!
olgak7
I’m so happy to hear that you were happy with the Pryaniki:).
Kitti
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Bring dough to room temperature before baking if you refrigerate overnight!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! These taste delicious but I ended up with flat cookies until the dough warmed up to room temperature so the last 20 or so are taller, as they’re meant to be. These were so simple to make though, will bake again for Christmas. Thanks for sharing!
olgak7
Thank you for sharing, Kitti.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the cookies.
Andrea
Hi Olga!
Really looking forward to making these for Christmas. Since the recipes isn’t in grams; how do you measure out your flour and sugar? Do you spoon and level or do you fluff and then scoop it out? Thank you!olgak7
Hi Andrea,
I scoop out the flour (without compacting it into the cup) and level it out.
Kristen
Hi Olga! I am really looking forward to making these cookies. I have a young volunteer working for me who is amazing. She is Russian so I thought I would make these and bring them to her for a Christmas present. Thank you for posting this recipe 😊
olgak7
That’s so thoughtful of you, Kristen. I am sure she will appreciate it. I hope you enjoy the cookies.
Kristen Choffe
Hi again. Should’ve replied a long time ago. Sorry. My volunteer, Ester, loved them! What a bit! And so delicious! Am making another batch today. I know it’s not Christmas but they are soooo good!
olgak7
I’m so glad you enjoyed them, Kristen. They are definitely so tasty any time of the year:).
Laura
I made these to test and see what I thought about maybe making them around Christmas – they are so delicious! I had exactly the same experience when offering them to people – as if they were thinking “yeah, I have tried gingerbread before” but then once they tasted them it was “So what’s in these then? How do you make them?” Haha. I used decaf coffee because I’m quite sensitive to caffeine and have very young children who I wanted to share them with 🙂 such a great recipe – it’s definitely a keeper! Thanks for sharing!
olgak7
That’s so great, Laura! I’m so glad you enjoyed them. Isn’t it awesome to surprise people with something they aren’t expecting? Thank you so much for taking the time to write.
Abby
I made Pryaniki true to the recipe. I added cardamom, cloves in addition to the regular spices. They turned out to be super nice. Wish I could post a picture. I love them. Husband loves them. I remember the Pryaniki in Russia used to have PRYANIKI embossed on them. I remember the taste being very similar – almost identical. Thank you for the lovely recipe. I made a huge batch so some lucky neighbors will get cookies today. Thanks again Olga. You made my day!
olgak7
I’m thrilled that you were happy with the recipe, Abby:). Your neighbors really are lucky that they will get to enjoy some Pryaniki too. Thank you for taking the time to write.
Cat S.
Thank you so much! My husband remembers these from his USSR childhood, except he says these are 100x better because they’re not rock hard like the factory made kind! I added the spices I had and wanted (cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cardamom) in similar quantities and it was delicious. These are going to be our yearly Hanukkah/Christmas tradition!
olgak7
I’m so happy to hear that, Cat! Thank you for taking the time to write. I love hearing that others our enjoying our favorite family recipes too.
Karla
I first made these 4 years ago and all the Russians in my life have been asking me to make them again ever since! To their delight, I finally made them again this year. I followed the recipe exactly as written and they came out perfectly. Even better than I remember. So flavorful and so soft!
Korinna Hansen
Is this a traditional Russian recipe, or us this your variation of it? Is the coffee traditional in them? I am just curious. Thank you. Korinna
Helen
Olga,
Thank you so much for the recipe!! Family loved it so much. Definitely will bake these pryaniki again 🙂
For those who asked about coffee- I didn’t have instant coffee and was not planning to get some so went ahead and brewed my own (ground coffee) and used it instead ( 1/2 cup of very strong brewed coffee). I believe the dough turned out the way it supposed to. I did as you recommended and let it sit overnight on the counter and bake the cookies in the morning 😉
Love, love, love them. Thank you!!!Jon
These are delicious! As someone who lives in the US now and used to live in Kazakhstan, your recipes help me get tastes of home!
I do have one question. These are a bit sweeter and lighter than some in my memory (variations by region, etc. etc.) I’m wondering if I should just cut some sugar or maybe add some molasses to get that exact flavor I remember. Thoughts?
Garnet
Hey Olga- I had a lovely time making the dough and it smells lovely, my Ukrainian cousins were so excited to see how they came out! However, I read the recipe a bit wrong and instead of setting them aside overnight, I left them in the refrigerator overnight. The dough is freezing cold and solid! Do you think it’s salvageable?
Jill
I made these a Christmas, but this time, I substituted Stevia in the Raw (powdered stevia) in place of the sugar. They came out great!! I have also found they are great with wine! I like a glass of wine with and after dinner, so sometimes I like something a little bit sweet with it, but I find that chocolate is too sweet…it makes the wine, especially red wine, taste too dry. These, however, have just the right amount of sweetness to complement the wine!
olgak7
Thank you for sharing your feedback, Jill. I am so glad you were able to make it work for you and enjoyed the Pryaniki.
Julia
Hi Olga, I had a question about the Dough, if it could be made few days before baking the cookies?
Thanks
olgak7
I have never made it days in advance, so I am not sure if it will work.
Rebekah
Definitely make sure to let it rise overnight. I tested this by letting it rise for 2 hours. It does not turn out the same. More bread like and doughy, still good just doesn’t look the same.
Bre
These cookies were addictive, probably because I loved the (soft) texture!
I halved the recipe and baked the cookies on Day 1, let them cool, and stored them room temp in airtight containers overnight. Glazed/decorated them on Day 2. I ended up making the coffee/butter/honey concoction twice because I thought I had maybe burnt the coffee based on the odor–but my 2nd try smelled exactly the same, so I moved on to the next step after letting it cool down.
I used the following spices/flavors, aside from the coffee, butter, & honey: anise extract, ground nutmeg, vanilla extract, allspice, cinnamon (1/4 tsp for halved recipe) and ground cloves (1/4 tsp).
Based on comments, I only baked the cookies for 16-18 min (they felt firm), and I used almond milk vs cow’s for the glaze. I did a double glaze layer because it came out sorta transparent :(. For flair–while the glaze was still wet–I sprinkled all the cookies with tiny silver sugar beads (that look like metal; gold-colored would have also worked well), and a few I added some lemon zest to also, just to see if it was a good addition. Conclusion: the cookies were beautiful, and soft, and yummy!
Next time, I will probably not halve the recipe, I will use decaf coffee (since I was eating so many back to back haha), I will use a 1/2 tsp more of anise, a little more nutmeg maybe?, I will let the batter rest for 5 hours (it was kinda sticky towards the middle), and I will again bake them for 16-18 min only. I will add a little bit of lemon zest to the glaze for the last 4th of cookies.
Thank you for the recipe!
Ali
Omg so I married a Russian immigrant and have been wanting to make some things for him that bring back some of his good memories for him. So my best friend found this recipe before she came to town last month just before my husband’s birthday and we made these for him! He loved them and I loved putting that smile on his face! I thought they were pretty good too so I will definitely be making these again in the near future! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Erica pm
I made this. It’s currently chilling in the frig. Although it is a blackout in sf tonight. It should be fine. Mine are less shiny and perfect because I used warm water in warming up my honey and it got in the honey. My plan became a hard freeze
janet peters
my glaze from your recipe did not duplicate your frosted cookies. What icing recipe did you use? My icing was transparent and just ran off the cookies. Please advise!! Thank you! Jan
olgak7
Hi Janet.
What a bummer that the icing didn’t work out for you. It sounds like you need to add more powdered sugar it was running off the cookies. Hope that helps.
janet peters
The thin icing was the problem and adding more powdered sugar was the right thing to do. Thank you very much for your quick response.!! Jan
olgak7
So glad that helped, Janet.
Jess
These are phenomenal! So easy and incredibly tasty. I put in the fridge overnight and then just put on the counter for an hour in the morning ahead of rolling into balls and baking. Turned out perfect.
olgak7
So happy to hear that, Jess! Thanks for taking the time to write.
Claire
Olga, thank you so much for sharing this incredible recipe! I made a test batch this weekend, as there’s a cookie exchange coming up at work, and I was blown away. The coffee syrup gives these soft, fragrant cookies a subtle richness and beautiful color. You can smell and taste the spices and honey, and it’s complex, but comforting, not overwhelming.
Since none of my local stores had anise and I read that some pryaniki recipes include citrus zest, I added more spices plus the fresh zest of 1 lemon and 1 orange to a half recipe. I also used fresh lemon juice instead of milk in the glaze. I think that turned out really well, but I’m planning to track down some anise for the next batch. 🙂 Thanks again!
olgak7
Hi Claire,
Thank you for taking the time to write. It sounds like the citrus was a perfect addition to the cookies – what a brilliant innovation. I’ll have to try it myself too.
Julia Reddy
I made it a few times and always great. But I was wondering how long can I keep dough in fridge for?
olgak7
Hi Julia,
I’m so glad you enjoy the recipe. The dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Jill E.
I make these every year and my Russian husband’s family love them! I use a Matroska cookie mold and they are so beautiful.
I do have one question. I’ve never had a problem with this before but all of a sudden, this year my cookies swelled and lost all of their detail. I’m wondering if it is the amount of honey I added. Can you confirm how many ounces it is? Some conversion charts say 12 oz, others say more.
Also, my oven only takes ~15 minutes to bake these to perfection. Longer than that and they become very dry.Laura
Hi Olga! I was wondering if the dough can be made ahead and stored in the freezer and for haw long?
Thank you!
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