Spiced Biscuits - that keep their shape when they’re baked!

by Samantha Dunsmore

(Scroll down to head straight to the recipe!)

Let's begin decorating biscuits!

When you first begin baking biscuits for decorating, whether its with royal icing or fondant, if you don't have the right recipe you will soon realise that some biscuits will come out of the oven looking quite different to when they went in. This is because some biscuits spread. There are thousands of recipes out there for delicious biscuits, but if you want those biscuits to come out of the oven looking exactly the same shape as they did when they went in, you need my no-spread biscuit recipe!  I use this recipe for all my festive baking, as well as my gingerbread houses, as the beautiful smell of spices will fill the air for weeks.

This dough is quite soft if you use it straight from the mixer, but I have never found that chilling this dough makes any difference to the taste (however, it can make it easier to handle). Instead, I like to use a few techniques that help me to carefully handle the soft dough (which is a breeze to roll) and you can find all those tips and more in my post: Rolling, Cutting and Transferring Dough.  

This is my recipe for no-spread Mixed Spice Biscuits, but you can substitute the spices, as and when you wish, with any of your favourite flavours. This recipe has evolved over the years, as I have discovered things along the way on my own baking journey. If you need a recipe for no-spread Vanilla Biscuits you can find mine here. 

Recipe Notes:
*These biscuits hold their shape extremely well thanks to the addition of cornflour (so make sure you don’t leave it out).
*If you are using this recipe for a gingerbread house, over-bake the biscuits slightly so they are a little stronger for construction!
*Oven times vary – you’ll hear this often!  However, one of the most important variables to think about is the size of your biscuits.  If you use a mini cutter, your biscuits should bake quicker as they are smaller and the opposite can be said for larger biscuits.  Use the times below as a guide for a medium sized biscuit (let’s say about 7cm diameter).
*I often put mixed sizes on a tray together but I will try to mix small with medium and medium with large.  If you put mini biscuits with huge biscuits you’ll end up with either under or over-baked biscuits!
*Inconsistencies in the size of an egg and the measurements of wet ingredients mean that you may need to add a little extra flour to this recipe if your dough is still a little sticky.

 Ingredients
230g butter
220g dark brown muscavado sugar
170g Golden Syrup
2 large eggs
Pinch of sea salt
4 heaped tablespoons cornstarch
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon mixed spice
4 teaspoons ground ginger
600g plain flour (plus extra if needed)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 170c (150c fan). 

2. Cream butter and sugar until well incorporated, light and fluffy (use a beater not a whisk).

3. Add golden syrup.  Beat until incorporated.

4. Scrape the bowl and the add eggs one at a time, beating between each addition.

5. Add the cornflour, cinnamon, ginger, salt and mix on medium-low speed until combined.  

6. Add the flour slowly with the mixer on a low setting.  You can tip flour in slowly over the side of the bowl if you are using a stand mixer or add a cup at a time if you are using a hand mixer.

The dough needs to form a solid ball.  If more flour is needed, add it now until the dough is no longer sticky and you can handle it easily.  Add by the tablespoon until you are happy. Feel free to speed up the mixer for about a minute. 

Bake for approximately 16 mins (turn tray after 8 mins for an even bake)

 

 

 

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