Basel Little Brown Cookies--Swiss-Style Brownies--Great Tasting & Gluten-Free

The last cookie I posted I called “tried-and-true” because my mother-in-law made those iced, spiced fruitcake drops for decades. This recipe is a little harder for me to pigeonhole, because, while I've only been making it a few years, it’s been a tradition in a lot of Swiss families’ repertoires for at least a century.

It’s named Basler Brunsli, which roughly translates to "Basel brownies." No, this doesn’t mean these cookies in any way resemble American brownies. It just means that somebody else, who happened to be Swiss and spoke German, took exactly the same approach as the English speaker who gave American brownies their name. This person decided to call some chocolate brown cookies “little brown things,” or “brunsli.” “Bruns” means “browns,” and the ending “li” is a diminutive that serves the same function as the “ie” ending in our words brownie and cutie. (If you are interested in American brownies, check out my Chocolate-Peppermint Brownies.)

The “Basler” part of the name refers to the Swiss city of Basel. I’m sure that somebody, somewhere has an explanation for why Basel gets credit for these rolled, chocolate-and-spice goodies. It is true that Basel was once a center of the European spice trade. But spices aren’t the most important ingredient in Brunsli, and in truth, folks ready these cookies all over Switzerland, especially for the holidays.

Some years ago I traveled around Switzerland learning about and trying all sorts of confections (this was a tough research assignment for my International Chocolate Cookbook!). Since chocolate is one of the products the Swiss are rightfully proud of, I wasn’t surprised that these very tempting rolled meringue cookies feature it. Brunsli also contain almonds and egg whites but no butter and usually no flour, which means that they are a fine choice when you need a cookie suitable for those who must avoid butter or who have gluten allergies. (The good news is that they will pass the palatability test with “regular” eaters, too.)

If you’ve never tried any meringue-and-almond based cookies other than French macarons, these cut-out cookies will be a revelation. They are just slightly puffy, and when fresh, are slightly chewy; after a few days they become crisp-crunchy. The chocolate-almond-spice taste is also unusual, and, to my mind, addictive.

Basel Little Brown Cookies (Basler Brunsli)

Today, Brunsli are normally served plain, as shown in the pic, although I’ve read that some recipes from the late 19th and early 20th century called for icing them with royal frosting. I frankly think this would be guilding the lily—not only too much trouble, but yielding overly sweet cookies. If you wish to decorate, I’d suggest just adding a fine zig-zag of white icing, or perhaps a pinch of colored sugar for garnish.

Tip: Some brands of cocoa powder are much drier and more absorbent than others, so the dough may occasionally come out crumbly and dry. In this case, add a little more egg white and process until the mixture comes together smoothly.

1 1/4 cups whole blanched almonds or almond slivers (about 7 ounces)

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, divided, plus more as needed

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch process

2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom or ground cloves

Generous 1/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup (about 3 1/2 ounces) chopped semisweet or bittersweet (not unsweetened) chocolate

2 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon almond (or vanilla) extract

In a food processor, chop the almonds, 1 cup powdered sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon, cardamom (or cloves) and salt until the almonds are powder fine; stop and stir to redistribute the mixture several times. Add the chocolate and remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar and process until the chocolate is finely ground. Add the egg whites and almond extract. Process, stopping and stirring once or twice, until the mixture blends and comes together in a mass. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes until the dough firms up a bit.

Place a rack in the middle of the oven; preheat to 325 degrees F. Line several large baking sheets with baking parchment. Turn out the dough onto a work surface heavily dusted with powdered sugar. Dust the dough with more powdered sugar. If the dough is too soft or sticky to roll out, gradually knead in additional powdered sugar, then roll it out 1/4 inch thick. Run a spatula underneath the dough and dust the surface with more sugar if needed to prevent the dough from sticking.

Cut out the cookies using 2 1/2-inch heart or trefoil-shaped cutters to produce cookies like those shown; or use plain or scalloped rounds or whatever shapes you like. Space the cookies about 1 1/2 inches apart on the baking sheets.

Bake (middle rack) one pan at a time 10 to 13 minutes, or until puffy and almost firm when pressed in the center top. Transfer the pan to a wire rack. Let cool completely; the cookies are too tender to handle while warm.

Store the cookies airtight for up to 1 week, or freeze airtight for up to 1 1/2 months.

Yield: Makes about 35 2 1/2-inch cookies.