The Bloomfield family celebrates their Finnish heritage during the holiday season by baking these buttery, fruity cookies every year. Read more recipes from the Wildwood Family Cookbook here. Bon Appetit!
Nauttia Jstk! (Enjoy in Finnish) 
The Bloomberg Family’s Lusikkaleivat (Finnish Spoon Cookies)
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies 1x
Description
The Bloomfield family celebrates their Finnish heritage during the holiday season by baking these buttery, fruity cookies every…
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) (225 g) unsalted butter
- 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- Pinch fine salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) vanilla extract
- 1/4-1/3 cup (60-80 ml) jam, any flavor
- Powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Melt the butter in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Continue to cook, swirling the pan occasionally, until the butter browns lightly and smells slightly nutty, about 15 minutes. Transfer the butter to a medium bowl and cool slightly
- Meanwhile, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in another medium bowl.
- Whisk the egg yolk, sugar, and vanilla into the cooled browned butter.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the butter mixture to make a dough that looks like wet sand.
- Scoop out dough with a small tsp (the kind you set the table with, not the ones you measure with). Rock spoon gently back and forth against the side of the bowl, packing the dough into the spoon, then scrape/slide the spoon against the inside of the bowl to make spoon-shaped cookies. Trim excess dough with your fingers and slide out onto the prepared pans, preserving their shape. (Try to make sure you form an even number of cookies, since these sandwich together.)
- Bake cookies until just browned, about 12 to 15 minutes. Cool almost completely on the baking sheets, and then transfer cookies to a rack to cool.
- When cool, spread 1/2 tsp jam on the flat side of a cookie, and then sandwich together with a second cookie. Repeat until all cookies have met their match. Lightly dust the cookies with the confectioners' sugar. Enjoy.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Baking
- Cuisine: Scandinavian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 cookies
- Calories: 200
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes these cookies “spoon cookies,” and how do you actually shape them?
Lusikkaleivät means “spoon cookies” in Finnish — the name comes from the shaping technique. You scoop a small amount of dough with a dinner-table teaspoon (not a measuring spoon), rock it gently back and forth against the inside of the bowl to pack the dough into the spoon’s concave shape, then scrape it out onto the baking sheet to preserve the spoon-shaped form.
Why does the recipe brown the butter rather than just melt it?
The instructions call for cooking 1 cup (2 sticks) of butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan for about 15 minutes, swirling occasionally, until it browns lightly and smells slightly nutty. Browning removes water and toasts the milk solids, adding a rich, nutty caramel depth to the cookies that plain melted butter can’t provide.
Why does the recipe suggest making an even number of cookies?
The instructions note to aim for an even count because these cookies are sandwiched together in pairs — each flat side gets 1/2 tsp of jam spread on it before being pressed together with a matching cookie, so an odd number leaves one cookie without a partner.
