This biscuit is a particular favourite in Mauritian confectionary and is utterly delicious! There are very few ingredients involved but each ingredient is a star in this blockbuster of a biscuit.
It does take some time to make as the pastry biscuit dough needs some chill time and the sugary glaze does require some patience. Not so much skill as time is needed. So don’t rush this bake as it is so worth the effort.
Ingredients
- 250 g sifted cake flour
- 175 g soft butter
- 3-4 TB apricot or strawberry jam
- 250 g sifted icing sugar
- 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 3-5 TB hot water
- soft pink gel food colour
- Add butter to sifted flour in a large mixing bowl.
- Using fingertips, rub in butter into the flour until the mixture resembles large breadcrumbs.
- Using hands lightly gather dough into a ball but do not knead dough to bring together.
- Cover in clingfilm and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.
- Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
- Lightly flour a flat surface and roll out dough to a thickness of about 1 mm.
- Do not over-flour the surface as this will make the pastry dry. Roll dough between plastic wrap or baking parchment if the dough is a little sticky. (the dough has a high fat content and will be a little sticky)
- Using a round 7 cm cookie cutter, cut out rounds. You can use other simple cookie cutters and cut different shapes.
- Lay biscuits on a lined baking tray and leave about a 5 cm space between each biscuit.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes. Biscuits will be pale but firm when done.
- Leave to cool for a few minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to completely cool.
- When cooled, use a spatula and dollop about 1/2 a teaspoon of jam over one biscuit and cover with another.
- Set aside and glaze with a glace icing when done.
Make Sugar Glaze
- Sift icing sugar into a medium sized glass bowl.
- Add lemon juice and water, a TB at a time and mix.
- When the icing looks well combined but thick, place glass bowl over a small pan of shimmering water.
- Mix icing over the slow heat until mixture loosens and becomes glossy.
- Add a drop or two of pink gel colour and mix.
- Using a teaspoon, pour icing over each biscuit. Do this over a wire rack placed on a tray so that the dribbled icing can be caught and re-used.
- Cover each biscuit completely with the icing and leave to set for about 20 minutes.
