Chessboard is a classic cookie to serve with coffee. They are made from cereal dough that is divided into two parts, one of which is flavored with vanilla sugar and the other with cocoa.
The pieces of dough are divided into 2 parts, which are rolled and shaped into squares. The lengths are then sewn together into a beautiful pattern that resembles a chessboard – which is what gave the cakes their name.
Here you will find my favorite recipes for chessboards, as well as instructions and tips for making them that are both delicious and beautiful:
preparation:
30 minutes
preparation:
10 minutes
Grace:
2 hours 30 minutes
total time:
3 hours 10 minutes
A classic Swedish cookie that you can serve as a Friday coffee.
To make the cake as beautiful as possible, you need a little time and patience, because this is the most difficult step of the recipe.
In order for the dough to be easy to handle and shape, it is important that you let the dough rest in the refrigerator for the time specified in the recipe.
material
-
200 g of butter
-
4.5 dl wheat flour
-
1 dl powdered sugar
-
2 teaspoons of vanilla sugar
-
2 tablespoons of cocoa
-
1 cream of salt
Instructions
- Cut the butter into cubes.
- Put salt, sugar, flour and butter in a food processor. Mix until it becomes a fine dough.
- Divide the dough into two equal parts (easiest with a food scale).
- Put the ball of dough in a food processor and add vanilla sugar. Mix until the vanilla sugar is well combined. Remove and keep aside.
- Put another ball of dough in the food processor and add cocoa to it. Mix until the cocoa is mixed into the flour.
- Divide the dough into two parts (2 dark dough balls and 2 light dough balls). Feel free to use a food scale to see if they weigh the same.
- Wrap the dough balls in plastic and put them in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Place a layer of plastic wrap on the kitchen counter.
- Take one ball at a time and roll it flat (about 30 cm long). Press down with your hands to form a square shape. Place on plastic wrap.
- Continue in the same way with the other balls of dough and add a checkered pattern to the plastic wrap, alternating dark and light (see picture below).
- Lightly press together and shape the dough into as square a shape as possible.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
- Heat the oven to 200 degrees.
- Take the dough out of the refrigerator and cut it into pieces about 0.5 cm thick It is important to use a sharp knife!)
- Place the slices well apart on a tray lined with baking paper. Bake on the middle level of the oven for about 8-10 minutes (the edges should not get a little golden brown).
- Take out and let cool.
- Serve immediately or store in an airtight container.
notes
The cookies get bigger in the oven, so remember to bake them at extra intervals.
Mine stuck together a bit, but after they cooled a bit, I cut them apart.
That’s why it’s better to bake the cakes in batches than to keep them on one baking sheet.
Tips for success with oak
Below are some tips on how to make really good checkers. These are the tips I wish I knew before I baked these cookies for the first time!
work with cold dough
To get a good shape on top of the cake, it is important that the dough stays properly in the refrigerator. This makes it easier to work the dough into a square shape.
Sort them by thickness
It is not easy to cut slices of exactly the same thickness. So my best tip is to put the slices on roughly the same size tray – then it’s easy to do them all at once.
If you want the best possible result, sort them by thickness before baking them in the oven.
bake in batches
The first time I baked a checkerboard, I made the mistake of putting too many cookies on one sheet (see photo).
It didn’t go so well because the cookies sit in the oven a bit and start to stick together. However, after cooling for a while, I was able to cut them apart.
Rather, bake several sheets so that there are large gaps between the cakes.
More oak
Shkrüter is one of the seven types of cookies, a concept in the Swedish coffee lottery. Seven cookie types represent the minimum number of cookies that can be served on a cookie sheet.
What cake should have seven varieties, although checkerboards are a classic and often belong on a cake plate.
In addition to oak, there are generally farmer’s cakes, raspberry caves, toffee cakes, chocolate slices, dreams and finishing touches.
How long does oak last?
The cookies will last up to 2 weeks if you store them in an airtight container at room temperature. You can also freeze the cookies, so they will last a few months in the freezer.
more cookie recipes
Have you tried my recipe? Please leave a comment!