Empire Biscuits

Name: Empire Biscuits
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 37 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Scottish
Ingredients: 175 g Unsalted butter; 85 g caster sugar; 225 g Plain flour; 25 g cornflour; 1 tsp Vanilla extract; 120 g raspberry jam; 200 g icing sugar; 2 tbsp Water; 4 whole glacé cherries

Buttery, melt-in-the-mouth shortbread biscuits sandwiched with tangy raspberry jam, coated in smooth white icing, and finished with a glacé cherry.

🇬🇧United Kingdom· Central Belt

Prep: 25 min
Cook: 12 min
Total: 37 min
Servings: 8
Difficulty: Easy
Calories: 310 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 9 gathered

Servings

175 g Unsalted butter — softened at room temperature
85 g caster sugar
225 g Plain flour — plus extra for dusting
25 g cornflour — yields a delicate, crumbly texture
1 tsp Vanilla extract
120 g raspberry jam — seedless preferred
200 g icing sugar — sifted
2 tbsp Water — lukewarm
4 whole glacé cherries — cut in half

Equipment

•Baking tray
•Greaseproof paper
•Rolling pin
•6cm biscuit cutter
•Wire cooling rack
•Mixing bowl

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 310 kcal
fat: 11 g
carbs: 52 g
fibre: 1 g
protein: 3 g
calories: 310 kcal

Instructions

1
Line two baking trays with greaseproof paper and preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C fan).
2
Beat the softened butter and caster sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy.
3
Stir in the vanilla extract, plain flour, and cornflour to bring the mixture into a soft dough.
4
Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to roughly 5mm thickness.
5
Cut out 16 rounds with a 6cm cutter, gathering and re-rolling scraps as needed.
6
Place the rounds onto the baking trays, leaving 2cm of space between them.
7
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until set and pale golden around the edges.
8
Cool on the trays for 5 minutes, then move to a wire rack until completely cold.
9
Spread raspberry jam over the flat side of 8 biscuits and top each with another biscuit.
10
Mix the icing sugar with lukewarm water until you have a thick, spreadable, glossy paste.
11
Spoon icing over the top biscuit and immediately press half a glacé cherry into the centre.

Chef's tips

Keep the biscuits pale in the oven to preserve their tender crumb. Always wait until the biscuits are completely cold before icing, otherwise the topping will melt and run off.

Ingredient substitutions

raspberry jam → strawberry jam or bramble (blackberry) jelly
glacé cherries → jelly tots or small candied fruit pieces
unsalted butter → block baking margarine

Storage

Store in an airtight tin at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Reheating

Not suitable for reheating as the heat will melt the icing and jam.

Common mistakes to avoid

•Rolling the dough too thin, which makes the delicate biscuits snap during assembly.
•Adding too much water to the icing sugar, making it too runny to set neatly.
•Icing the biscuits while warm, causing the icing to slide off.