An epicurean adventure to: South Africa
These traditional Spice biscuits are known as 'Outydse Soetkoekies' in South Africa, meaning 'old fashioned sweet biscuits'. They are deeply rooted in the South African baking heritage and are probably one of South Africa's most cherished cookies.
Don't let the simple title fool you though, they are jam-packed with flavour and make the perfect tea-dunking biscuit. Our recipe for spice biscuits is filled with the warm and aromatic tones of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.
Generally, they are enjoyed as everyday biscuits with a cup of tea, but they are particularly popular around Christmas time. They are also fantastic cookies for using cookie cutters to create fun shapes!
Another delicious South African biscuit recipe to try is these condensed milk cookies. Alternatively, try these ultimate chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar.
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Fast facts - South Africa
| Location | Southernmost tip of the African continent. It is bordered by Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) and Lesotho. |
| Capital | Pretoria. |
| Language | South Africa has 11 official languages, including English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa, Sotho, Tswana, Pedi, Venda, Tsonga, Swati, and Ndebele. English is widely spoken and is the language of business, while Zulu and Xhosa are the most commonly spoken African languages. |
| Population | Circa 60.2 million. |
| Trivia | South Africa is the only country in the world where TWO Nobel Peace Prize winners lived on the same street! Both Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu had houses on Vilakazi Street in Soweto, Johannesburg. |
What's to love about this recipe
- This is an easy, simple recipe with big, bold flavours.
- These cookies are great for making with kids and using cookie cutters to create fun shapes.
- Great as an everyday dunking biscuit, or the perfect accompaniment for an afternoon tea.
- Can be left plain or lavishly decorated with royal icing or printed edible wafer paper (see photo above).
- These traditional cookies make a lovely gift, especially when presented in a pretty cookie tin or a nice box.
Key ingredient notes and substitutions
**Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full list of ingredients.
The spices
We use ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg and ground cloves. Just listing these spices feels like a cosy, happy holiday hug for your senses!
Alternatively, you can add a little more of each spice if you'd like a stronger flavour. As the recipe stands, one teaspoon of each spice gives a good balance that would be to most people's palate.
Butter
In this recipe, we use unsalted butter, but you can also use salted butter if you prefer. If you opt for salted butter, you can leave out the 0.5 teaspoon of salt but it won't make a huge difference to the saltiness.
Make sure the butter is at room temperature before using it
Top tip: To speed up the process of softening butter, you can use a microwave-safe glass bowl, fill it with an inch of water and heat it in the microwave until the water boils.
Remove the bowl from the microwave, discard the water, and quickly turn the bowl upside down over the butter. The residual heat from the bowl will soften the butter.
White sugar
You have the option to use either regular sugar or caster sugar. Both types of sugar will work well.
Unfortunately, light or dark brown sugar will not work for this recipe.
Eggs
This recipe uses two large eggs at room temperature.
Top tip: To quickly bring fridge cold eggs up to room temperature, place them in a bowl with hot water for about 10 minutes.
How to make the spice biscuits: Step-by-step
- In a bowl, sift the all purpose flour, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg and ground cloves together.
- In a separate large bowl, add the butter, sugar and vanilla extract. Beat them together with an electric hand mixer, or a stand mixer, for 5 minutes until the mixture turns light and fluffy.
- Add the two large eggs to the butter and sugar mixture and beat until well combined. Don't worry if it looks slightly curdled, this is expected.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.
- Fold together with a spatula or wooden spoon until you have a dry, crumbly mixture.
- Set the spatula aside and use your hands to lightly work the dough until you form a ball. You can do this inside the bowl.
- Tip the dough out onto a large piece of cling film. Flatten it into a thick disc and tightly cover it with the cling film. Place the dough in the fridge for at least an hour to firm up.
- Preheat the oven to 180C/356F/gas mark 4 and prepare a baking sheet with nonstick baking paper or silicone baking mats. You may need a few trays depending on the sizes you have available.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the biscuit dough out to 3-5mm thickness and cut out shapes using a cookie cutter.
- Transfer the biscuits to the prepared baking sheets.
We recommend placing the biscuits on their baking sheets in the fridge for 10 minutes. This helps them retain their shape better during baking, especially if you have intricate cookie designs. The chilled dough will hold its form nicely, resulting in beautifully baked cookies.
- Bake the biscuits for 13-15 minutes or until the tops are a light golden brown.
- Allow them to firm up for 5 minutes on their baking trays and then move them onto a wire rack to cool down.
Suggestions for decoration
Traditionally, these spice cookies are enjoyed plain, but you can spruce them up with the following ideas:
Royal icing
You can add a thin layer of royal icing to the biscuits, using any colour you prefer.
If you're looking for expert tips on cookie decoration, you can check out this helpful video by Wilton.
Additionally, you can visit this link to Litteviews-Crafts for recommendations on the best piping tips to use.
Edible printed wafer paper
In this recipe's featured photo at the top of the page, we used edible printed wafer paper to decorate the biscuits.
See our Christmas cookie recipe for a more in-depth demonstration of how we use edible wafer paper.
What is it?
Edible wafer paper, or 'rice paper' is made from potato starch. It simply dissolves on the tongue, unlike 'icing sheets' which are usually wrapped around cakes and are more robust. Therefore, make sure you buy 'edible printed wafer paper' and not 'icing sheets'.
To apply it to the biscuits, it's best practice to first cover the biscuit with a thin layer of white royal icing. Once the icing has dried, cut out shapes from the wafer paper and fix them on top of the icing with water or edible glue. Press down gently and let it dry.
There are stunning edible printed wafer papers out there. Have a look at Etsy or most of the large baking supply shops.
We have no affiliation with them, but we used CakeyBake in the UK for the blue and white prints on the biscuits shown in the photo.
Storage
The biscuits can be stored in a sealed airtight container, such as a biscuit tin, for up to 3 months and still maintain their freshness.
If you prefer to freeze them, place them in an airtight container and they will freeze well. To defrost, simply remove them from the freezer at least two hours before you plan to enjoy them. This makes them perfect for batch baking ahead of the holidays and having a supply of delicious biccies ready to enjoy.
More cookie recipes you might enjoy
Recipe
Spice biscuits ('Soetkoekies')
Ingredients
- 420 grams plain flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 0.5 teaspoon salt - 2.5.ml
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon - 5ml
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger - 5ml
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg - 5ml
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves - 5ml
- 225 grams butter - room temperature, salted or unsalted
- 160 grams sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs - room temperature
Instructions
- In a bowl, sift the plain flour, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg and ground cloves together.420 grams plain flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 0.5 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- In a separate large bowl, add the butter, sugar and vanilla extract. Beat them together with an electric hand mixer, or a stand mixer, for 5 minutes until the mixture turns light and fluffy.225 grams butter, 160 grams sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the two large eggs to the butter and sugar mixture and beat until well combined. Don't worry if it looks slightly curdled, this is expected.2 eggs
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Fold together with a spatula or wooden spoon until you have what looks like a dry, crumbly mixture.
- Set the spatula aside and use your hands to lightly work the dough until you form a ball. You can do this inside the bowl.
- Tip the dough out onto a large piece of cling film. Flatten it into a thick disc and tightly cover it with the cling film. Place the dough in the fridge for at least an hour to firm up.
- Preheat the oven to 180C/356F/gas mark 4 and prepare a baking sheet with baking paper or silicone baking mats. You may need a few trays depending on the sizes you have available.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the biscuit dough out to 3-5mm thickness and cut out shapes using a cookie cutter.
- Transfer the biscuits to the prepared baking sheets. We recommend placing the biscuits on their baking sheets in the fridge for 10 minutes. This helps them retain their shape better during baking, especially if you have intricate cookie designs. The chilled dough will hold its form nicely, resulting in beautifully baked cookies.
- Bake the biscuits for 13-15 minutes or until the tops are a light golden brown.
- Allow them to firm up for 5 minutes on their baking trays and then move them onto a wire rack to cool down.
**Nutritional data disclaimer**
Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is calculated by a third party and we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We try our best to give you the most accurate information, but we do not take responsibility for errors that may be present. Also, the nutritional value of the recipe may change depending on the exact brands and products used. We recommend that you consult with a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian for personalised advice on your dietary needs.
Nutrition
For food safety advice, including guidance on food allergies
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