Orange Chocolate Chip Biscuits
Introduction
There's nothing more comforting than a stack of homemade biscuits and a pot of tea to look forward to mid-afternoon (or mid-morning!). This is where little fingers come into play – kids love rolling dough and squishing and squashing it. Let them go for it, imperfect shapes won’t affect the taste of these biscuits.
Serves: Makes about 40
Ingredients
170g (6 oz) unsalted butter, softened
90g (3 oz) soft brown sugar
90g (3 oz) caster (superfine granulated)sugar
2 medium (size 6) free-range eggs, at room temperature
320g (11 oz) standard flour
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
Pinch of salt
200g (7 oz) chocolate chips
Finely grated zest 1 orange
Method
1 Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F. Cream butter with brown and white sugars in an electric cake mixer. With machine running, drop in eggs one at a time and continue beating on high until well mixed.
2 Have ready flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt sifted onto a piece of kitchen paper. Fold into the creamed mixture with a large spoon. Mix in chocolate chips and orange zest.
3 Roll pieces of dough to the size of a walnut in your palms and put them on baking sheets (trays) lined with baking (parchment) paper (leave space for them to spread a little during cooking). Gently pat balls flat with the fingers, then bake for 15 minutes, or until lightly golden.
4 Remove from oven, cool on baking sheets (trays) for a few minutes, then transfer to cake racks to cool. Store airtight once cool.
Recipe Notes
Before you start, get the butter nice and creamy by beating it in a warmed china bowl with a wooden spoon. After adding the eggs the creamed butter and sugars should look like a rich thick buttery cream. The biscuit mixture should be firm and easily rolled, not damp or sticky, nor dry and crumbly. Add a touch more flour, or a few drops of orange juice if necessary to correct it. And, although I love orange added to chocolate chip biscuits, it is optional.
Photography Aaron McLean http://www.aaronmclean.com