12 g baking powder (or use the original leavening Potash and a tsp of Hartshorn Salt (diluted in 40g warm water.) Don’t mix those two leavening agents together! (see note**)
Whole almonds for decoration (or use melted chocolate for decoration)

Method:

Warm the honey and mix with rye flour. Caution! You will need a strong mixer for this. A hand mixer won’t be able to mix this dough.

Leave in bowl, cover with a clean towel or cheese cloth. Leave the dough in a cool, dry space for at least 3 days or up to 3 months. The aging process will improve the flavors of the dough. 

Bake day: 
When ready to bake mix the dough with a dough hook unit smooth. Add spices, half of the almonds and fruits as well as the leavening agent. Mix well and let the dough rest for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400° F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread out the chopped almonds on the sheet. Roll out the dough and place on top of the almonds on the sheet (or use cookie cutters). Decorate with halved almonds if desired. Brush with water for a nice shine. Place on the baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes. Let cool on a rack and cover with a sugar glaze or chocolate or just leave plain.

Store in a tin box or wooden box. If Lebkuchen start to get too hard, place an apple into the box, this will soften the cookies. Enjoy!

Notes:

*You can use ready-to-spice mixes or mix your own Lebkuchen spices. Every bakery has its own spice mix which is often guarded like Fort Knox! Your spice mix is unique and will be the secret ingredient in your holiday baking. 

Experiment with different spices and you’ll soon find your favorite mix which you could then also use in other holiday baked goods. Always buy your spices fresh every season or grind them yourself in a spice mill Here’s a suggestion:

30 g ground cinnamon
5 g ground cloves
2 g ground allspice
5 g cardamom
2 g mace or a pinch of nutmeg
1 whole ground star anise  

** Pottasche is a common ingredient in traditional German recipes. It may also be written as potash, potassium carbonate, and carbonate of potash. It is used in classic German Lebkuchen recipes. You may see it in conjunction with Hirschhorn Salz (hartshorn or baker's ammonia (ammonium carbonate)) in other traditional holiday recipes, such as springerle. They will give the baked goods their classic taste and a light texture. Caution: Mixing Pottasche with fat will result in a soapy flavor. When mixing with warm water be aware of the strong odors. Don’t mix Pottasche and Hirschhorn Salz together but add each ingredient separately to the dough.