Category: Cookies

Ricciarelli

Ricciarelli are an Italian almond crinkle cookie originating in Siena, usually eaten around Christmas but I like to enjoy them all year round. I’ve had the pleasure of visiting the shop where ricciarelli were originally made.

This recipe makes 15-20 biscuits. This is a very messy recipe so be prepared, however the soft-yet-firm, chewy, ricciarelli are worth it.

Ingredients

  • 2 egg whites (approx. 65g)
  • 200g icing sugar, plus extra for dusting
  • 200g ground almonds
    • If you can’t find ground almonds, you can blitz blanched whole almonds with a food processor
  • 2tbsp almond extract
  • 1 tsp vanilla paste
  • 1 orange, zested

Process

  1. Whip the egg whites with squeeze of orange juice to stiff peaks at a high speed
  2. Fold in icing sugar and ground almonds until combined
  3. Fold in almond extract, vanilla paste, and orange zest until combined
  4. Cover bowl with cling film and pop in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight.  The longer it is left, the better.
  5. Preheat oven at 140C fan assisted.  Prepare a baking tray with baking parchment or a silicone mat.
  6. Cover work surface with dusting of icing sugar and turn out the dough.  Roll it in to a long skinny sausage about the circumference of a 2 pence piece (this is about 2.5cm, or an inch).
    • The dough is going to be very sticky.  I found it best to wear powder-free latex/vinyl disposable gloves when working with the dough
  7. Cut the dough sausage into pieces about the same width as the circumference.  Roll into a sphere-like shape and place on the baking tray, flattening it slightly.  Place each ricciarello with some space between them as they will grow in the oven.
  8. Dust generously with icing sugar.  I use a loose tea strainer so that I have more control over where the icing sugar is going.
  9. Bake for 18 minutes.  Allow to cool completely before removing from the baking tray.  Dust with a bit more icing sugar if you have a sweet tooth like me.

Enjoy!

Amazon Associate Links

Most of the baking equipment I used can be found on Amazon, find them here

Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Cups

There’s nothing quite like eating ice cream out of a cookie cup. It’s a bit like eating ice cream out of a waffle cone, only a bit more childish and decadent. Plus, who doesn’t love the novelty of being able to eat the ice cream bowl?

This recipe will make 6-8 cookie cups. All ingredients, except the margarine, should be room temperature.

Ingredients

  • 125g small chocolate chips
  • 115g cold margarine, cubed (I use Stork for Biscuits because it comes in a block), extra for greasing
  • 80g golden caster sugar
  • 80g light brown muscovado sugar
  • 100g self raising flour
  • 150g plain flour
  • 1 large egg, beaten

Process

  1. Beat the margarine, using a stand mixer or hand mixer, at a high speed until lighter in colour
  2. Add the sugars to the beaten margarine and beat together until well combined
  3. Push down the mixture from the edges. Add half of the flours
  4. Add the beaten eggs and mix until combined
  5. Slowly add the rest of the flours in equal amounts until dough is tacky and doesn’t stick to your fingers if you touch it. You might not use all of the leftover flour
  6. Add the chocolate chips and mix with a stiff spatula or wooden spoon. You could damage your mixer if you use it to mix in the chocolate chips.
  7. On a flat surface, rip off a piece of clingfilm which is about 10cm wider than your freezer drawer/shelf. Turn out the cookie dough on to the clingfilm and form into a thick sausage along the length of the clingfilm, about the circumference of a muffin tin hole. Make sure to not make it wider than your freezer drawer/shelf.
  8. Pop the cookie dough sausage in the freezer for 2 hours to 1 day
  9. Turn the oven on at 175C (fan assisted)
  10. Line the underside of a muffin tin with aluminium foil and grease lightly with margarine. I only do every other ‘mound’ so that the cookie cups are easier to separate when taken out of the oven.
  11. Using a sharp knife, cut the cookie dough sausage into rounds about 1.5cm thick. These need to be warmed slightly before moulding over the underside of the muffin tin, so roll into a ball between your hands and then flatten again (be careful not to warm them too much or the cookie cups will melt too quickly in the oven). Place over the ‘mound’ and smooth the dough down the edges until the dough reaches the flat of the tin. Repeat this for each greased ‘mound’.
  12. Pop in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes
  13. Wait about 15 minutes to cool on the tray then move over to a cooling rack.

Enjoy with your favourite ice cream and toppings!

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Most of the baking equipment I used can be found on Amazon, find them here

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

As a self-proclaimed cookie monster, it’s often difficult for me to find really tasty dairy-free cookies.  Frequently, dairy-free desserts are also gluten-free, and this can make cookies really crumbly and dry.  My cookies are crisp on the outside and deliciously chewy-gooey in the middle.

This recipe will make around 12 big cookies or 24 small cookies. All ingredients, except the margarine, should be at room temperature.

Ingredients

  • 250g chocolate chips (or chopped up chocolate bar)
  • 230g cold margarine, cubed
  • 160g golden caster sugar
  • 160g light brown muscovado sugar
  • 70g cocoa powder – NOT hot chocolate powder
  • 200g self raising flour
  • 200g plain flour
  • 5g baking powder
  • 2 large eggs, beaten

Why both self raising and plain flour you might ask? Well, just self raising flour would cause the cookies to rise too much, whereas just plain flour wouldn’t have enough rise.

Why both golden caster sugar and light brown muscovado sugar? The muscovado sugar adds an almost caramel-like flavour to the cookies and makes the cookies more gooey, but by itself would make it too sweet and caramel-y.

Dairy Free Swaps

Dairy free ingredients

The chocolate powder, chocolate chips, and margarine are the ingredients that usually contain dairy. I’m so glad I found the Dr Oetker Jumbo Choc Chips; I can be really lazy and chopping up chocolate can be tedious. It does state on the back ‘May contain traces of dairy’, but this is something that my intolerance allows. If you do have an allergy, PLEASE use a chocolate that you know will not cause a reaction.

Process

  1. Beat the margarine, using a stand mixer or hand mixer, using a high speed until lighter in colour
  2. Add the sugars to the beaten margarine
  3. Push down the mixture from the edges. Add half of the flours and all of the baking powder and cocoa powder
  4. Add the beaten eggs and mix until combined
  5. Slowly add the rest of the flours in equal amounts until dough is tacky and doesn’t stick to your fingers if you touch it. You might not use all of the leftover flour
  6. Add the chocolate chips and mix with a stiff spatula or wooden spoon. You could damage your mixer if you use it to mix in the chocolate chips.
  7. On a flat surface, rip off a piece of clingfilm which is about 10cm wider than your freezer drawer/shelf. Turn out the cookie dough on to the clingfilm and form into a sausage along the length of the clingfilm. Make sure to not make it wider than your freezer drawer/shelf. If making smaller cookies, split the dough in half and make 2 cookie dough sausages.
  8. Pop the cookie dough sausage(s) in the freezer for 2 hours to 1 day
  9. Turn the oven on at 175C (fan assisted)
  10. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. I use a silicone baking mat
  11. Using a sharp knife, cut the cookie dough sausage into cookies! They should be about 1.5cm thick.
  12. Pop in the preheated oven for about 17 minutes
  13. Wait about 15 minutes to cool on the tray then move over to a cooling rack

Enjoy!

P.S. want a less gooey cookie? Turn the temperature down to 150C (fan assisted) and bake for 25 minutes. This should make a more biscuit-like cookie.

Amazon Associate Links

Most of the baking equipment I used can be found on Amazon, find them here