GLUTEN FREE BARBADOS BISCUITS
I love to cook when I have leisurely time to enjoy it – a quiet Sunday afternoon for instance, when it’s nothing but pleasure to potter in the kitchen, particularly if I’m making small, sweet things. Indulgences.
I also love the way that pleasure is amplified when I go to the cupboard some time later and find…Yay! Bikkies in the Tin.
It always makes me happy to find Bikkies in the Tin.
These Gluten-free Chocolate Barbados Biscuits are the latest little treats I like to find. They’re darkly rich and pretty, but not gooey.
Do try them when you have some quiet time to spare.
Jan
GLUTEN FREE BARBADOS BISCUITS
Makes 24
100 gm dark chocolate (60-70% cacao), chopped
170 gm shelled pecan nuts
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
150 gm brown sugar
1 tablespoon Dutch cocoa powder
125 gm almond meal
2 teaspoons good quality vanilla paste
2 egg whites
Gluten-free icing sugar for dusting
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Place 2 racks in the centre of the oven and line 2 baking sheets with baking paper.
Select 24 pecan nut halves and set aside.
Place the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave again. Repeat, stirring well in between, until most of the chocolate has melted. Stir vigorously until smooth.
Place the remaining pecan nuts into a food processor, along with the salt, brown sugar and cocoa, and process until finely chopped. Add the almond meal and process again to combine.
Stir the vanilla paste and egg whites together, then add to the food processor, pulsing to mix through.
Pour the melted chocolate over the top and pulse until the mixture clumps together and forms a rough ball (it will happen quickly).
Transfer the dough to a piece of baking paper and place in the freezer for 5-10 minutes until it can be handled easily.
Knead to a uniform consistency and divide into 2 logs. Cut each log into 12 pieces, rolling each into a ball, and placing 12 on each tray. Plant a thumb into each one to flatten it and push a pecan half into each indentation.
Bake for 15 minutes, until the biscuits have raised a little and are firm to touch. They will still be quite soft inside.
Remove from the oven and allow biscuits to cool on the trays for 5 minutes before removing to a rack. Add a spoon of icing sugar to a small sieve and use a teaspoon to direct it over the pecan halves.
The biscuits will keep well in an airtight container for 4-5 days.