Five-Spice Crackle Cookies

These dramatically craggy cookies call upon Chinese five-spice for their warming complexity. The flavors in the blend—usually a mix of star anise, fennel seeds, cloves, cinnamon, and peppercorns—evoke the aromatic notes of a classic molasses cookie. But then there’s added depth from astringent clove and licorice-like star anise. Ingredients and ratios differ between brands—some contain white pepper, others tingly Sichuan or black peppercorns. The latter tend to produce a spicier cookie while blends with white pepper, like the Frontier Co-Op Five Spice Powder Blend (my favorite brand for this recipe), are a bit funkier. Choose based on your own preferences.

These clever treats decorate themselves, forming abstract patterns as the cookies bake and their sugar coating bursts open. Tossing the dough balls in granulated sugar before chilling might seem unnecessary, but it creates a protective barrier that prevents the powdered sugar from dissolving while baking, resulting in the most striking presentation; don’t skip this step. And freezing them for exactly 15 minutes—no more, no less—solidifies the outside of the dough while keeping the center soft, resulting in an exterior that cracks beautifully as the cookies spread.

Note that it’s important to gently spoon flour into your measuring cup and lightly level the surface with a knife or spatula. Scooping directly into a flour container and packing the measuring cup will result in too much flour per cup and drier cookie dough. Better yet, just weigh your dry ingredients.

Read more: 5 Stunningly Simple Cookies, No Mixer Needed