The run-up to Christmas is a beautiful time, but the Vorweihnachtszeit doesn’t feel quite right without one quintessential item: Lebkuchen. They’re almost impossible to find in the U.S., especially the originals, so my family came to the rescue and sent a generous care package from Germany.

Lebkuchen are traditional German Christmas cookies, originally from Nuremberg, made with ground nuts instead of flour and flavored with warming spices like cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom. They’re soft, aromatic, and only lightly sweet — nothing like the overly sugary treats you find here. Many are baked on thin wafers and finished with a simple glaze or dark chocolate.

More than a Christmas sweet, Lebkuchen are tradition, memory and love.