Ginger and Honey Snaps

marcus@bointon.com (Marcus Bointon) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:50:15 +0000

I had this peculiarly specific desire to make some biscuits that were crunchy rather than chewy. Nigella didn't seem to have anything that fitted the bill, but I found this recipe in Rachel Allen's "Bake" book that I got for Christmas, and have had good results with so far. When rolling out the biscuits (definitely the best part) I thought they looked oddly like small potatoes. Next time I won't squash them quite so much so that they stay a bit rounder. While I was baking there was an enormous rainstorm, really quite spectacular and unexpected as it had been quite sunny all day. They came out brilliantly (if I say so myself), a lovely crisp mixture of sweet and spicy, exactly what I was after. As usual, the main problem with making biscuits is that I eat them, which isn't terribly good for me. I did send some round to Sandeep and Pam though, and they are proving handy for bribing Zoë.

Cookie frenzy

marcus@bointon.com (Marcus Bointon) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:31:19 +0000

I've been baking some cookies for Christmas. Not your average tree decorations, I've been attempting to bake Alsatian "Bredele", which might be called "petit-fours" in French. These have traditionally been baked at Christmas since the mid 15th century in Alsace. I'm working from a French recipe book called "Bredele et Gâteaux de Noël" by Thierry Kappler. So far I've made (I'm using the Alsatian names as they are more interesting!):

Wiss un schwàrzi butter bredele (those chequered and spiral ones)
Vanille hernle (litttle vanilla crescents, no picture as they, um, got tasted a bit too much)
Spretz bredele (wiggly piped vanilla shapes)
Hernele (a.k.a. Fer à Cheval, i.e horseshoes)
Kokos Màkrone (coconut macaroons)
Spetzbuewe (home-made jammy dodgers!)

I've run into a few problems; the coconut macaroons were looking perfect until I added the coconut, which made the meringue separate horribly in the piping bag; the hernele dough was far too crumbly to roll, so I added an egg; the spretz bredele dough was far too stiff to pipe; I don't know if it's my oven, but nearly all the recipes turn out undercooked, so I'm adding on about 50% cooking time. I've still got a few more to do, but I'm pretty happy with how these are turning out; they certainly look nice!

Pet Pixels - Baking

Ginger and Honey Snaps

Cookie frenzy