Well, Enwezor went out. His 3D biscuit sculpture was a disaster. No one wants a biscuit with no snap, even if it is in the shape of a spaceship...
So, I took it upon myself to bake some biscuits in honour of biscuit week, something I never really bake. I also took it upon myself to emulate Diana from Bake Off and make a Mary Berry classic - pinwheel biscuits. And they were surprisingly straightforward, producing a deliciously crumbly and scrumptious biccy. Yum.
Vanilla biscuit dough
50g softened butter
25g caster sugar
25g cornflour
50g plain flour
½ large egg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Chocolate biscuit dough
50g softened butter
25g caster sugar
25g cornflour
40g plain flour
½ large egg
15g cocoa powder
Method:
1) Make the vanilla biscuit dough first, and start by combining the softened butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
2) Add the dry ingredients, and mix in gradually the wet ingredients. I find "half an egg" a very strange measurement, so I just cracked and beat an egg into a mug and guesstimated.
3) Make the chocolate biscuit dough in the same way as the vanilla.
4) Wrap both sets of dough in cling film and bung in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
5) Roll out the sets of dough to roughly the same rectangular shape.
6) Lay one lot of dough on top of the other.
7) Starting at one end, tuck the end of the two pieces of dough, much like you would do if you were making a swiss roll. Keep the roll really tight all the way down - this is worth taking your time over!
8) Wrap in cling film and chill for another half hour.
9) Preheat the oven to 160 degrees fan and grease and line some baking tins.
10) Take the dough out of the fridge and cut with a sharp knife into 20 biscuits.
11) Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes, until the vanilla biscuits are nice and golden. And don't forget to rotate the tins halfway and turn them, to ensure an even bake!
12) Remove from the oven and set on a cooling tray, ready for scoffing with a cuppa.
These look so dramatic and made a brilliant impact in the office when I brought them in. I also put a picture on Twitter, and even got a favourite from GBBO contestant Chetna!
As Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood would say, the proof is in the taste and these were so buttery and crumbly. Definitely delicious and I will most definitely be making them again. Maybe, as Mary Bez suggests, for a Bonfire Night treat...