Easter Biscuits

Tues 3 April 2007

I was too late for this month's WTSIM Easter Basket hosted by the Passionate Cook, but it didn't put me off making something a little Easter themed myself. I'll be engaging in some hot cross bun making this evening, but it will be the same recipe as last year, so I wanted to come up with something else.

As usual, I wanted to choose something traditional, regional and English, which was surprisingly tricky. I ended up making some Easter Biscuits. There are loads of recipes for these all over the web, and I used the one from the Biscuit Appreciation Society. Their recipe wasn't a huge departure from any of the other similar recipes around. These biscuits allegedly originate in Shrewsbury and I can't work out why there aren't more regional recipes to be found on the web. I guess I need to get my hands on some old books ...

Pre-heat the oven to 200C. Cream 100g butter with 75g of caster sugar, before adding the yolk of one egg. Add 200g plain flour, a pinch of salt, 1/2 tsp mixed spice and 1/2 tsp of cinnamon. Combine well before adding 50g currants, a generous tablespoon of mixed peel and 2 generous tablespoons of rum (I used rum because I didn't have brandy ... well, I had grappa, but I figured that didnt' have a sufficiently English feel). Obviously I was doing all of this in the food processor and the mixture was quite crumbly. However, once I'd tipped it out and started kneading it together it came together well.

Roll the mix out to about 5mm thick before cutting into biscuits. Back for about 7 minutes, before removing the biscuits from the oven and glazing them with the egg white and dusting with caster sugar. Next time, I think I'll actually whisk the egg white and caster sugar together, rather than trying to dust the biscuits with the sugar. Bake for another 5 or so minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown.

These are tasty crisp little biscuits, with a good, spicy flavour. The currants add a lovely caramel like effect. They were very popular and I ate far too many.

And now I have to wait until next year ... though at least I can use the left over mixed spice in my hot cross buns!

tagged with: easter, baking, biscuits

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