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The cookies traditionally look like this and are made with a speculaas-specific mold:



They're "a type of spiced shortcrust biscuit baked with speculaas spices" and are extremely traditional in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. Speculaas spices are very similar to pumpkin spice/gingerbread cookies to my knowledge, so if you like those, you'll love these!

Speculaas spices
2-5 tablespoons ground cinnamon to taste
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground aniseed
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground mace (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground dried mandarin zest (optional)

Speculaas cookies:
250 grams all-purpose flour (if you can use bread flour for the higher gluten content)
2 teaspoons baking powder
2-3 tablespoons speculaas spices
pinch of salt
150 grams dark brown sugar (refined sugar with molasses, specifically)
150 grams butter or margarine, room temp
3 tablespoons of lukewarm milk

Mix the flour and baking powder first. Then mix in all the other ingredients using a wooden spoon or your hands, until properly incorporated.

Tightly wrap the dough in plastic foil and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Preheat oven to 175 Celsius or 345 Fahrenheit.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface and use cookie cutters to cut out shapes. You can also use a drinking glass for round cookies, or cut rectangles with a butter knife. Place the cookies on a baking tray lined with baking paper (NOT wax paper).

Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes.

If you have leftover dough and are waiting for a tray to finish baking, wrap the dough back in the plastic foil and store in the fridge until you can make the next batch. You want the dough relatively cold when working with it.

Fresh Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients
For the dough:
¾ cup warm milk (whole milk or 2% preferred) (110 degrees F)
2 ¼ teaspoons quick rise or active yeast (1/4-ounce package yeast)
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
¼ cup butter, melted (I prefer salted, but unsalted works, too)
3 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting
3/4 teaspoon salt
For the filling:
2/3 cup dark brown sugar (light brown sugar also works)
1 ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon
¼ cup butter, softened
For the cream cheese frosting:
4 oz cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons butter, softened
¾ cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions
Warm milk to around 110 degrees F. I like to do this by placing milk in a microwave safe bowl and microwaving it for 40-45 seconds. It should be like warm bath water. Transfer warm milk to the bowl of an electric mixer and sprinkle yeast on top. Add in sugar, egg, egg yolk and melted butter. Mix until well combined. Next stir in flour and salt with a wooden spoon until a dough begins to form.

Place dough hook on stand mixer and knead dough on medium speed for 8 minutes. Dough should form into a nice ball and be slightly sticky. If it's TOO sticky (meaning it's sticking to the bottom of the mixer, add in 2 tablespoons more bread flour.) If you don’t want to use an electric mixer, you can use your hands to knead the dough for 8-10 minutes on a well-floured surface.

Transfer dough ball to a well-oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a warm towel. Allow dough to rise for 1 hour to 1 ½ hours, or until doubled in size. This may more or less time depending the humidity and temperature in your home.

After dough has doubled in size, transfer dough to a well-floured surface and roll out into a 14x9 inch rectangle. Spread softened butter over dough, leaving a ¼ inch margin at the far side of the dough.
In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar and cinnamon. Use your hands to sprinkle mixture over the buttered dough, then rub the brown sugar mixture into the butter.

Tightly roll dough up, starting from the 9-inch side and place seam side down making sure to seal the edges of the dough as best you can. You will probably need to cut off about an inch off the ends of the dough as the ends won’t be as full of cinnamon sugar as we’d want it to be.

Cut into 1 inch sections with a serrated knife or floss. You should get 9 large pieces.
Place cinnamon rolls in a greased 9x9 inch baking pan or round 9 inch cake pan. (I also recommend lining the pan with parchment paper as well, in case any of the filling ends up leaking out.) Cover with plastic wrap and a warm towel and let rise again for 30-45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove plastic wrap and towel and bake cinnamon rolls for 20-25 minutes or until just slightly golden brown on the edges. You want to underbake them a little so they stay soft in the middle, that’s why we want them just slightly golden brown. Allow them to cool for 5-10 minutes before frosting. Makes 9 cinnamon rolls.

To make the frosting: In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Spread over cinnamon rolls and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes
To make overnight cinnamon rolls:
After placing rolls into the greased pan (after the first rise), simply cover, place overnight in the fridge and then bake them in the morning as directed. I like to bring my cinnamon rolls to room temperature first by leaving them on the counter for 30-45 minutes before baking (this is known as the second rise).