I knew I was in trouble with these cookies when I couldn’t stop eating the dough scraps.

The story behind them is the author’s obsession with Delta Airline’s Biscoff cookies.  I can’t remember the last time I flew Delta and the notion of an airline giving out cookies is as quaint as leg room and on-time departure, so I am not familiar with that particular item.  But I do remember Archway Dutch Windmills,

one of the many variations of this cookie.

The cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger make these an obvious choice for a holiday cookie (in fact they are a traditional Dutch or Belgian treat served on St. Nicholas’s Eve, December 6th) but it would be a shame if that’s the only time they were made.  I love the spices and I love the buttery crunch but I especially love the orange zest that adds just the right extra note.  I’m now on my second day of nibbling these and I grow fonder of them with each bite.

 

The dough is dry, so it’s a little challenging to roll out, but don’t be discouraged.  Just keep pushing the parts that break off back into the ball and carry on.  As I made them I wondered if the dough could be rolled into a cylinder and then just sliced into individual cookies?  I’ll try next time and let you know.  That might be in 45 minutes,the way things are going.