Mulled Wine Pretzel Cookies

My mugs haven't seen much mulled wine this season unfortunately. I had to go through the corrections of my book almost every single day of December and I didn't dare blur my mind and risk some silly mistakes - and annoy my editor Holly - by enjoying more than a tiny sip of the hot wine. I've been a really good girl up until now, but a couple days ago I gave in all the files of my manuscript so now I'm ready to indulge in the sweet pleasures of the aromatic red juices. A large pot full of wine, orange, black tea and spices (you can find my recipe here) filled my kitchen with the most tempting smell of Christmas and I happily enjoyed it under our Christmas tree. In tune with the season and its treats, I came up with an idea for a mulled wine cookie, crunchy like shortbread and shaped like a pretzel.

I only used a few tablespoons of the spiced wine for the dough as I didn't want to soften the shortcrust pastry too much. To enhance the Christmassy feel and taste, I added a spice mixture of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, all spice and orange zest to the dough. A pink glaze made of icing sugar and mulled wine sprinkled on top finished my Christmas pretzels off.

Happy 4th Advent! xx

Mulled Wine Pretzel Cookies

For the cookies

• plain flour 300g / 2 1/3 cups

• salt 1/8 teaspoon

• cinnamon 2 teaspoons

• nutmeg, preferably freshly grated, 1/4 teaspoon

• cloves, crushed in a mortar, 1/2 teaspoon

• allspice, crushed in a mortar, 1/4 teaspoon

• butter, soft, 160g / 2/3 cup plus 1/2 tablespoon

• organic egg yolk 1

• granulated sugar 130g /2/3 cup, plus more for sprinkling

• orange zest, freshly grated, 1 1/2 teaspoons

• strong mulled wine 3 tablespoons (you can find my recipe here)

For the icing

• icing sugar 100g / 1 cup

• mulled wine, about 2-3 tablespoons

For the cookies, combine the flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice in a bowl.

In a large bowl, beat the butter, egg yolk, sugar, and orange zest with an electric mixer until creamy and well combined. Add the dry flour mixture and the mulled wine and mix with the dough hooks of an electric mixer until combined. Divide the dough in half, scrape each half on a piece of plastic wrap and form both into logs then wrap tightly in the plastic wrap. Freeze for 15-20 minutes or until the dough is hard enough to cut with a knife.

Set the oven to 180°C / 350°F (preferably convection setting). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

When the dough is hard, take it out of the freezer. Cut thin slices off the log. Roll each slice to a ball between your hands then roll into a 24cm / 9 1/2" long pencil shape on a counter top. Twist into a pretzel and spread on the lined baking sheets, sprinkle with a little sugar. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes (slightly longer using conventional setting) or until golden. Let them cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before you transfer them onto a cooling rack. If you want to sprinkle them with icing, they have to be completely cool.

Whisk the icing sugar and mulled wine until well combined, add more sugar or wine to reach the desired texture, and sprinkle over the cookies. When the icing is hard, you can store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week.