Mixing Directions

1. Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy.  Beat in the egg and molasses.
2. Sift the flour, ginger, cloves and cayenne pepper and pour it into the butter mixture.
3. Using a wooden spoon, gradually mix the ingredients together to form a stiff paste.
4. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface and knead a few minutes until smooth.
5. Wrap mixture and chill for about 30 minutes.

Baking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Grease two baking pans
2. Roll out half of the Lebkuchen until it is about 1/4 inch thick.
3. Cut out heart shapes using your cookie cutter.  Place on cookie sheet.  Do the same with the other half of the mixture.
4. If you have any trimmings left over, roll into 1 inch balls and flatten lightly on cookies sheet.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack.

Decorating Directions

1. Melt each chocolate separately in a pan over simmering water, until melted.
2. Place about 2 tbsp of each chocolate into the corner of a Ziploc bag and set aside.
3. With the remaining chocolate, coat cookies and spread with a spoon to cover all the cookie.  You should have 1/3 of the cookies with each chocolate.
4. Take your Ziploc bag of semi-sweet chocolate and just barely snip the corner where the chocolate is with scissors.  This will make a tiny stream of chocolate.
5. Decorate the cookies using a back and forth motion with the bag.  Do the same with the other two chocolates. Coating the cookies until the chocolate is gone.  (if the chocolate starts to harden on you, place it in the microwave for about 10 seconds, it should soften right up).
6. Dust some of the cookies with confectioners sugar and/or cocoa.
7. Allow all cookies to set about 2 hours until chocolate is hard.