Homemade Chocolate Biscuits! ©

 

 

 

 

 

 

Homemade chocolate biscuits….YUMMY!!!!

Even if you never cook, these are a must!  Once made, NEVER FORGOTTEN!!!!

 

For Claire, my chocolate loving student!

 

 

 

Easy

 

 

 

 

 

Oven Temperature 200.C/400.C

 

 

 

 

Cooking Time 10 minutes max

 

 

 

 

Ingredients

100 g unsalted butter, at room temperature

50 g sugar

25 g Cocoa powder

100 g Plain flour

1 ‘level’ tsp baking powder

25 g butter for greasing baking tray

 

For The Filling

50 g Bitter chocolate 70% Cocoa

50 g unsalted butter

50 g icing sugar

Coffee essence made from 1 tbs Jacob’s Coffee to 1 tbs boiling water, leave five minutes to infuse.

 

Decoration

1 tbs icing sugar for dusting, violet flowers, if available.

 

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 200.C. Melt your butter and grease baking tray using a pastry brush.

2. Using butter, that has been taken out of the refrigerator at least 1/2 to 1 hour beforehand, cream together with sugar using an electric beater until light and fluffy. 3 minutes at least.

3. Sieve flour together twice with cocoa powder and baking powder in order to mix thoroughly.

4. Add flour to creamed butter mixture and bring together with a wooden spoon until it comes together into a ball.

5. Place mixture on lightly floured board, divide into two and roll out into two long oblongs about 3 cm in diameter. Using a knife cut into 1 cm slices, about 3 cm in circumference. See photograph.

6. Take each slice and roll into balls using your hands which you have lightly floured.

7. Place on greased baking tray, 5 cm apart and flatten out into 4cm rounds, 1/2 cm thick using a fork which you have dipped in cold water.

8. Bake in pre-heated oven for ten minutes, keep an eye on them, they should be brown, not blacken, so ten minutes max, chocolate burns easily!

9. Remove from oven, wait 4 minutes for biscuits to harden and then using a spatula, carefully place on wire cooling rack. When completely cold, if not using straight away, place in air-tight container, in between sheets of grease-proof paper. See photograph.

 

Filling

1. When ready to eat, beat softened butter,( 1 hour out of refrigerator,) and icing sugar together until light and fluffy.

2. Break chocolate into a glass, heat-resistant bowl. Fill saucepan with water and bring to the boil. Place glass bowl over saucepan, making sure it does not touch the water and  leave chocolate to melt. Add ‘coffee essence,’ ( see instructions in ingredients,) having passed it through a sieve. The chocolate mixture may stiffen, but this does not matter. Add to creamed butter and icing sugar.

3. Holding the one biscuit in the palm of your hand, place about a teaspoonful of chocolate filling in the center of your biscuit. Then press very gently, as they easily break, a second biscuit on top.

4. Arrange biscuits in a round on serving plate and dust with icing sugar, using a small sieve. If you can find violet flowers, use a little filling to stick one on each biscuit.

 

***** These biscuits I made in cookery school and I never forgot them, they were called “Magda Biscuits.”

 

 

 

This is what you are aiming for….

 

Gather together your ingredients.

 

Pre-heat oven and melt butter in a small saucepan to grease your baking tray.

 

Grease baking tray using a pastry brush.

 

Cut softened butter up into small cubes and place in mixing bowl. This makes for easier mixing.

 

Add  sugar.

 

Beat with electric beaters until light and fluffy. 3 minutes at least.

 

Weigh out cocoa powder and sieve into larger bowl to get rid of lumps.

 

Measure out exactly 1 level tsp of baking powder, by using a knife to flatten it off. (This makes for much more accurate measuring.) Add to bowl with cocoa powder.

 

Sieve flour onto cocoa powder and sieve all together again into another bowl to thoroughly mix. This also adds lightness to your biscuits.

 

 

 

Now pass through sieve again into beaten butter and sugar mixture.

 

Mix together with a wooden spoon.

 

Gradually it will come together as one ball. Divide into two and roll out on lightly floured board, into two oblongs about 3 cm in diameter.

 

 

Now slice into 1/2 cm slices.

 

 

….take each slice and roll into balls.

 

Place on greased baking sheet and using a fork dipped in cold water, flatten out into even rounds, 3 cm in diameter, 1/2 cm thick.

 

Here they are on the greased baking tray….

 

Place in pre-heated oven.

 

Once cooked, max 10 minutes,( they want to be brown, not blackening, chocolate burns easily!) remove and once cooled after 4 minutes, place carefully using a spatular, on a wire cooling rack.

 

Filling :

 

 

Use bitter chocolate 70% Cocoa.

 

Break up into glass, heat- resistant, Pyrex bowl and stand over saucepan of boiling water, being careful the bowl does not touch the water. ( Bain Marie. )

 

Weigh out icing sugar and softened butter.

 

Beat until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.

 

Pour over melted chocolate. Mix well. Your filling is ready! If not using straight away, reserve in a cool place.

 

Fold a piece of grease-proof paper, double or triple and pencil round the circumference of your air-tight container.

Cut out and use sheets in between biscuit layers……

…… like this. Reserve until ready to use and then fill.

 

When ready to assemble biscuits, make sure your filling, if kept in the refrigerator, has been left at room temperature for one hour to be completely soft, because the biscuits break easily if you try to fill them with too hard a filling.

 

Spread with a small amount  of filling in the center and place second biscuit on top. Press gently together.

 

Dust with icing sugar, using a small sieve. ………One already missing !

 

 

Final result along with ‘Brandy Snaps.’