Makes approx 25
Biscuit:
- 250g soft butter
- 150g caster sugar
- 40g cocoa powder
- 300g plain flour
- 1/2 tsp bicarb of soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
Topping:
- 2 x 15ml tablesp cocoa powder
- 175g icing sugar
- 60ml boiling water, from a kettle
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Christmas Sprinkles
Method:
- Preheat oven, 170deg C/ gas mark 3 Line baking tray with baking paper.
- The really simple way to do this is to just dump all ingredients in a food processor and blitz until combined (If you want to you can do it by hand this way instead Cream butter & sugar until it becomes a light, soft whipped mixture. Beat in the cocoa, then beat in flour with bicarb and baking powder.)
- The Mix is quite sticky, mine was a little crumbly as my butter was probably not as soft as it should have been, if you’re worried about your fingers put on disposible gloves to pinch of bits of the dough and roll them into walnut size (ish) balls then place them on the tray and flatten slightly. Leave mayby half an inch of space between them as they spread but not too far. If you don’t wear gloves you can enjoy licking your fingers when this part of the process is complete!
- Bake for 15 mins, no longer, they will continue to cook as they cool. Take them out and leave them on the tray in a cool place for 10 mins before removing to a wire wrack with newspaper/kitchen towel beneath it (to catch icing drips) and let fully cool.
- Make your topping by putting cocoa, icing sugar, water & vanilla extract into small saucepan & whisk over low heat until smooth. Take off heat and leave for 10 mins, this makes the glaze go thick and unctuous. If you try to put it on too early your icing will go all over the shop and be too thin.
- When biscuits are cool, drizzle each with a tablespoon of choc glaze, or as much as you want really, more is more on this occassion though! Then use the back of a spoon to help spread mixture. Don’t wait too long before putting on your sprinkles or they might not stick! So ice around half a dozen, then scatter your festive sprinkles over them, then do the rest.
Mine are covered in icing sugar as I’m saving my festive Sprinkles for nearer the time. There is also only 2 on the photo because we ate the other 10 of them. They are very chocolately, very crumbly and really, really moreish.
I cooked 25 in total and froze 2 bags of 7 cookies. To freeze simply follow the instructions to bake the biscuits then when they’re cooled put them in a freezer bag and seal it (or a freezer safe tub) and keep them in there up to 3 months. Defrost them then ice and eat. I’m planning to take some out for a party on the 18th December and some more for Christmas day, for those who don’t like Christmas pudding.
If you’re a food fan or you know someone who is I can thoroughly recommend Nigella Christmas to you. It’s filled with glorious recipes and none of them are very challenging. I love my copy!
My grandmother made the best butter cookies and delicious peanut butter whirls. They were so good.
Thanks for the book recommendation… I’ll have to check that one out myself:)
I’m not very good at baking (although I wish I was) so I don’t have the recipe, but I’ve really have fallen in love with both Katydid cookies and Rocky Road cookies. That’s thanks in part to a school fundraiser selling tubs of cookiedough:) I’m sure they have the recipes online somewhere… I’ll have to hunt them down and try to bake them because I’m running out of cookiedough!!!
Debby -Oh, grandmothers do bake the best goodies, definitely. :)
Yadira -I like rocky road, Nigella has a recipe for that in her CHristmas book too! :)
Those cookies look yummy! My mom made the best Christmas cookies, rum balls, sugar cookies, gingerbread, all kinds of German cookies, but my favorite was her Pfeffernusse cookies – they were amazing.
Yum! I will have to try making these :-) I love watching Nigella’s cooking shows on the Food Network – she always enjoys what she’s making so much!
I will try these Christmas biscuits tomorrow! But if you enjoyed Nigella’s Rocky Roads, then you must try the Crunchy Salted Peanut Chocolate Bars that she made recently on an episode of Nigella Kitchen – I can really recommend those…….yummy!
Susan -those biscuits sound you!
Sarah -I love watching Nigella!
Margaret -funnily enough I made them just yesterday! They are yummy! I’m giving them for Christmas presents so I’m not tempted to eat the whole lot *LOL*