Check out these pretty and delicately spicy Belgian biscuits I baked. They may not look as professional as the ones you can buy from cafes all around Auckland, but I like the rustic aesthetic and they taste just as great. These biscuits make the perfect gift for someone who deserves a treat and since it was Ange Crane's birthday yesterday, it was an apt opportunity to make them. Here's my recipe:
Makes 28
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
250g softened butter
1 organic egg
2 1/2 teaspoons mixed spice
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2teaspoons ground ginger
2 3/4 cups plain flour softed
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/3 cup good raspberry jam
Icing:
1 cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon butter, melted
3 drops of red raspberry essence
Coloured sugar:
1/4 cup white sugar
2 drops of red food colouring
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
Cream sugar and butter until fluffy and add the egg. Sift in mixed spice, cinnamon, flour and baking powder. Mix until you get a dough. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Roll out the d
ough and using a cookie cutter of your desired shape to cut out 56 biscuits.
Place them onto the trays and bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden.
Transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool.
Spread half the biscuits with jam and sandwich with the remaining biscuits.
To make the icing sift icing sugar into a bowl and add the milk, butter and raspberry essence. Stir until mixture is well combined, a spreadable consistency and pale pink. If It is too stiff, add a little more milk.
To make the coloured sugar simply mix sugar in a bowl with red food colouring.
Finally, spread the icing over the biscuits and sprinkle with the coloured sugar.
Bon appétit!
By Jordan Rondel
Top image: Michiko Hughes. Above: Anna Fitzpatrick
