Fairy Gingerbread Biscuits (Cookies)

 

What is as light as air . . . as thin as a fairy's wings . . . and as crisp as an autumn day??? Fairy Gingerbread Biscuits, of course!!    

These biscuits are incredibly addictive . . . almost dangerous to have around.  They are just loaded with lots of gingerbread flavor,  with plenty of snap, using both ground ginger and freshly grated ginger-root.

This is a recipe that I adapted from a book that I had in the UK which had all of the recipes in it from Cooks Country. I no longer have the book so I cannot give you the exact title of the book. It got left in the UK along with all my other books.

 

Heating the ground ginger in a skillet until it becomes fragrant increases it's potency and adds to the deliciousness.  

I have always done that when I am making Mexican food, toast the spices in a skillet first . . . and it just makes sense that it would add flavor when using warm baking spices as well.  

Just be careful not to burn them.  Heat them in a dry skillet over a moderate heat until they become very fragrant. That's all, no longer.

 

I always grate the fresh ginger-root using my micro-plane grater.  It does the perfect, fuss free job and in quick time too.

I also do garlic that way.  I have two micro-plane graters. One that I use for garlic and one that I use for everything else.

 

A mixture of pure vanilla and orange essences heighten the lovely flavor of the ginger, creating a beautifully flavored taste treat. 

Orange is a flavor that goes so well with ginger bakes.  I sometimes add it to my gingerbread, or even to my gingersnaps. Try it next time you make some. You will see what I mean! 

If you have all of your ingredients at room temperature and you will find that this batter mixes together really quickly and easily.  

It is a bit of a faff to spread it out as thin as I do . . . but trust me when I tell you that every second of faff is worth the trouble.  The thinner the better and the crisper.

My MIL's Gingersnaps are done in much the same way.  Thin, crisp and very moreish. You could easily eat half of them in one go.

 

The end result is a biscuit that is airy and light and oh-so-crisp . . . crunchy, and quite quite irresistible.  Very, very moreish.

  I enjoyed mine with a cup of my favorite Blood Orange herbal tea . . . deliciously dunkable and quite tasty.  These are very easy biscuits to snuffle down without a second thought!

Delicious with a warm cuppa for elevensies . . . for afternoon tea break . . . and for munching on when you just want something sweet to soothe your senses.  Or for a Hobbit's second breakfast.    

These are the perfect treat to bake on a sunny and warm Indian Summer's afternoon.

*Fairy Gingerbread Biscuits*
Makes about 5 dozen
Printable Recipe

As light as air, and as thin as a fairy's wings . . . deliciously spiced and as crisp as an autumn day.  In other words, fabulous!

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
75g plus 2 TBS plain flour (3/4 cup + 2 TBS)
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp salt
72g of unsalted butter, softened (5 TBS)
100g plus 1 TBS soft light brown muscovado sugar (1/2 cup + 1TBS)
4 tsp grated fresh ginger-root
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp orange extract
60ml of whole milk, at room temperature (1/4 cup)

 

Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F/ gas mark 3.  Have ready 2 large  flat baking sheets.  You will be working on the bottoms of the trays. 

Turn the baking trays upside down and spray them with a bit of non fat cooking spray.  Tear off a couple of sheets of baking paper, and press these onto the cooking spray on the baking sheet. Set aside.  (You will be baking on them upside down.)

Add the ground ginger to a small skillet.  Heat over medium heat until it becomes very fragrant.  Remove from the heat and stir together with the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt.  Set aside.

Cream the butter together in a bowl with the sugar, until light and fluffy.  Beat in the fresh ginger-root.

Stir together the milk and flavorings.  Add the milk to the creamed mixture alternately with the flour mixture, making 3 dry additions and 2 wet, beginning and ending with the flour.

Divide the batter in half. Using a pastry scraper or a small offset spatula, spread the batter out onto the prepared baking sheet, covering the parchment paper.  The batter will be very thin.  This is a bit fiddly, but it is well worth the extra time it takes to get it right.

Bake, one sheet at a time on the middle oven rack,  until deep golden brown, for 16 to 20 minutes. (Turn the sheet around halfway through the baking time.) 

Remove from the oven and immediately score into rectangles with a pizza cutter or a very sharp knife.  Allow to cool completely before carefully separating the cookies along the scored lines.  Store in an airtight container.

Betcha can't eat just one!