German Lebkuchen - anyone tried LCing these?

[BeckyM]

We took a Christmas market trip to Germany and had to try all the goodies. I looked lebkuchen up and some of the recipes look like they could be low-carbed - here is one I am thinking about, from Cuisine Magazine - the only issues appear to be the sugars and candied orange peel. I added the American measurements, LOL:

Elisenlebkuchen - Makes about 40
They are crisp and slightly chewy, and they keep extremely well. A combination of five to seven spices is the norm in Germany. Many mixtures include nutmeg, and ground coriander seed is also popular – make up your own mix from the spices you like.

For the spice mixture
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground aniseed
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cardamom seeds
1⁄2 teaspoon ground black peppercorns
1⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves
1⁄2 teaspoon ground allspice
Combine all the spices – you won’t use all of the mix so store the remainder in an airtight container. If you are using whole spices, which taste best of all, grind them finely then shake them through a sieve.

For the biscuits
150g unblanched almonds = 9/10 c almonds or 1 3/8 c almond meal
170g caster sugar = ¾ cup superfine sugar (Truvia/Splenda/Erythritol combo?)
155g dark chocolate, chopped = 7/8 c or 5.4 oz
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
4 tablespoons finely chopped candied peel (sugarfree marmalade?)
3 egg whites
170g icing sugar, sifted = ¾ c (powdered Truvia?)

Preheat the oven to 160°C and line 3 baking sheets with baking paper.
Put the almonds, caster sugar and 55g chocolate in a food processor then pulse until the almonds are finely ground. Combine with 3 teaspoons of the spice mixture, the zest and candied peel.
Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form then gradually add the icing sugar, continuing to beat until stiff and shiny. Gently fold the almond mixture into the egg white mixture until everything is combined. Use a small spatula to spread tablespoons of the mixture out on the baking paper into circle or heart shapes about 5mm thick. (You can shape the Lebkuchen accurately and quickly by making a template. Take a piece of thick corrugated card about 1cm larger than the size of the biscuit and draw on the shape you want then carefully cut away the card inside it. Position the template on the baking tray and spread the mixture in the centre then lift away the template. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.) Bake for 15-20 minutes or until very pale gold. Leave to cool on the baking sheets then remove with a spatula.
Melt the remaining 100g chocolate in a metal bowl over hot – not simmering – water. Once it has melted, remove the bowl and set it aside for 5-10 minutes, then put the bowl back over hot water to melt it again. (This is a quick way to temper the chocolate and encourage it to set firmly on the biscuits.) Put the melted chocolate in a small forcing bag and pipe patterns on top of the Lebkuchen. Set aside until the chocolate sets firmly then store in an airtight container.

Becky

[buttoni]

Birgit's Bytes just posted a low-carb, gluten-free version of Elisenlebkuchen on her website. Why don't you check out Birgit's recent blog post.

[BeckyM]

Thanks so much! She has some other recipes that look great, too. I obviously didn't put in the correct search terms to find her recipe - if I had put in 'low carb elisenlebkuchen' rather than just 'lebkuchen' it would have come up.

Becky

[buttoni]

Yes, she has some WONDERFUL recipes. Quite a creative cook there!

[BeckyM]

Yes, the only problem I have is that I don't use polyd at all. I threw mine out as it and I do not get along. So I will have to come up with something to sub for that.