Food_Heaven_-_October_2019

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44 baking heaven OCTOBER WWW.FOODHEAVENMAG.COM

Ginger biscuits

MAKES 40

300g (10½oz) butter, softened

220g (6oz) light muscovado sugar

1 free-range egg

70g (2¾oz) black treacle

400g (14oz) plain flour

1½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tsp salt

2½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp ground cloves

50g (1¾oz) granulated sugar

1 Cream the butter and light

muscovado sugar together in a large

bowl until light and fluffy. Add the egg

and treacle, then beat well to combine.

2 Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda,

salt, ginger and cloves together,

then add to the butter and sugar

mixture. Mix well to form a sticky

dough. Wrap the dough in clingfilm and

chill in the fridge for 1 hour.

3 Preheat the oven to 210°C/Gas Mark 6

and line 2 baking trays with baking paper.

4 Divide the chilled dough into 40 equal

pieces, then roll each piece into a 2.5cm

(1in) ball. Place the granulated sugar on

a large plate, then roll each ball in the

sugar until well coated. Place the balls

on the baking trays, spaced well apar t to

allow for spreading.

5 Bake in the oven for 12-14 minutes,

then allow to cool on the baking trays for

10 minutes before transferring to a wire

rack to cool completely.

TIP The dough can be portioned and

frozen for use at a later date. If you like

fiery ginger biscuits, add an extra

teaspoon or t wo of ground ginger.

2 Bring the dough together with your

hands, form into a ball, wrap tightly in

clingfilm, then chill in the fridge for at

least 1 hour.

3 Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas Mark

6, then turn out the dough onto a well

floured surface. Roll the dough to around

3mm (^1 / 8 in) thick. Cut out blossom

shapes with a cutter and space them

apart on a baking tray lined with

parchment paper. Bake in the oven for

8-12 minutes, until the biscuits are a light

golden brown colour. Cool on a wire rack.

4 Meanwhile, divide the fondant icing

into three, then colour each third with

food colouring. Roll out each piece of

coloured fondant thinly, then cut enough

blossom shapes to cover each biscuit.

Use the same biscuit cutter as before –

the biscuits will have spread a lit tle so

the fondant will sit neatly on top. Use

small plunger cutters to make tiny

flowers, then push a silver ball into the

centre of each.

5 Spread a little of the icing onto each

cooled biscuit, then top with the fondant

blossom shapes. Use dots of the

remaining icing sugar paste to stick on

the tiny blossoms in pret t y pat terns.

Butter blossom

biscuits

MAKES 24

For the biscuits

90g (5¼oz) soft butter

100g (3½oz) caster sugar

1 free-range egg, beaten

½ tsp vanilla extract

200g (7oz) plain flour

½ tsp baking powder

a pinch of salt

For the icing

150g (5½oz) ready-to-roll fondant

icing

3 of your favourite food colours

small silver sugar balls

4 tbsp icing sugar, mixed to

a paste with a little water

1 Cream the butter and sugar together

until pale and fluffy, then gradually beat

in the egg and vanilla extract. Sift

together the dry ingredients, then

gently work into the butter mixture to

form a very soft dough.