Gingerbread Biscuits

I love spices. I love flavour, heat and zinginess in all of my food. Earlier this month I attempted to make my very own gingerbread house, but to my dismay, it all collapsed as I was assembling the last roof panel. It looked rather messy and hap-hazard, but it doesn't darrrrrrn good!! Here is a fool proof recipe that is guaranteed to produce you with some very delectable gingerbread biscuits. 

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Ingredients

(Makes about 25 biscuits)

125g Butter
50g Dark soft sugar
50 Light soft sugar
300g Plain Flour
1tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
3tbsp Golden Syrup
2tsp Ground Ginger (I like mine extra spicy so I always make sure these are HEAPED GENEROUSLY)

1. Preheat the oven to 200degreesC. Place baking paper on 4 baking trays.

2. Heat the butter, sugar and syrup in a saucepan until all of the sugar has disolved and the mixture is no longer 'granually'.

3. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ginger into a large mixing bowl and stir until the colour of the ingredients is a consistent light brown (due to the ginger).

4. Pour in the melted sugar, syrup and butter mixture into the flour and stir slowly until the mixture is thoroughly combined. Towards the end, begin to use your finger tips to roll the dough together into a ball shape. (The mixture is full of fat and sugar so will leave your hands sticky and glossy.)

5. Wrap the dough in some cling film and chill in the fridge for about 30mins.

6. Flour a work surface and rolling pin and roll out the dough until it is the thickness that you require. (Not too thin or they will break and burn.) Cut out your shapes carefully and place them onto an already prepared baking sheet.

7. Bake in the oven for about 12mins. Gingerbread does not take very long to cook and burns easily due to the high sugar content - KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR BISCUITS! After 12mins they will still feel slightly soft, do NOT worry about this - the biscuits get much harder as they cool.

8. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for at least 30mins.

9. Decorate however you wish! Personally, I love the combination of ginger and white chocolate. I like my gingerbread to be VERY spicy (to the point where your tastebuds tingle) and I find that the white chocolate just soothes your mouth after the zinginess and leaves a sweet, milky taste in your mouth....but you may prefer icing sugar and jelly diamonds!!

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They are very quick to make, and fun to decorate. I made this batch the night before going to the inlaws for Christmas so I wasn't too fussed about the decoration element as I didn't have much time, but actually thought that this melted white chocolate technique looked quite cool.

They were very addictive and didn't last very long between the family. And the white chocolate was absolutely scrummy with the ginger. This is a great recipe to try with the children over the Christmas holidays as it allows them to be as creative as they so wish. 

Bon Appetit!!