Wednesday 6 April 2011

Cheesey bikkies: what not to do


They say that pride comes before a fall.  I was following a recipe that had been posted by no less than three bloggers (Cindy, Anna and Frances).  They had found it difficult to roll out the pastry whereas it was a breeze for me to make a little log and slice it up.  Only after I put them in the oven did I discover that I had put 100g of flour rather than 1 cup (120g) of flour.  Oops!


I then compounded my mistake by forgetting to put on the fan force function on the oven for part of the baking.  I was tired, having not slept well the previous night.  Maybe not a good evening to be grappling with new recipes and new toys.  The desire to play with the oven was there.  I was peckish.  I just felt too lazy to even follow a recipe properly.  I couldn't be bothered chopping herbs, finding anything closely resembling sour cream in the fridge, or even waiting for the dough to rest in the fridge.  In retrospect, I should be amazed that I produced anything edible.

Cindy had said her biscuits were much better out of the oven than when they cooled.  I had high expectations.  Mine were the opposite.  I put this down to the fact that they were swimming in butter, which is very hard to pick up when hot.  When cold the biscuits were actually rather good, in an intense kind of way.  I told E they were little bundles of cholesterol, being mostly butter and cheese.  Nevertheless we both took a few to work to snack on and found them most tasty.

Apparently the original recipe makes twice the biscuits I got.  Maybe this is because Anna rolled small balls and pressed them with a fork.  My mixture was too soft for such maneuvering.  Perhaps I will try Anna's recipe again some time with the herbs.  I am sure herbs would lighten the taste, but I do love some smoky bikkies. They were surprisingly moreish.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: SOS KC: Beets, Greens and Chickpea Curry
This time two years ago: A Nutroast Tribute
This time three years ago: Tartan Day Stew

Smoky & Cheese Biscuits
Adapted from Cocktails and Finger Food by Murdoch Books via Morsels and Musing
Makes 25 or more
 
100g plain white flour
100g chilled butter, chopped
60g smoked cheese
60g parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp mustard
shake of chilli powder

Preheat oven to 180 C (or 160 C fan forced). Line two baking trays with baking paper or silicone mats.

Use fingertips to rub butter into flour in a large bowl until mixture is the texture of breadcrumbs (I still had a few small lumps of butter because it was quite a wet mix). Add remaining ingredients and mix in with a spoon or your hands until it forms a ball.

Roll the dough into a long log, using floured hands and a floured surface.Wrap in clingwrap and refridgerate 10-15 minutes if you want. I couldn't be bothered waiting.  Cut into thin discs using a sharp knife. Arrange on prepared trays and bake for 10-15 minutes until lightly golden. Cool on a wire rack. Ours kept for about 4-5 days but I think they would keep longer.

On the Stereo:
Permanent: Joy Division 1995

11 comments:

  1. Hehe well you might not be surprised to learn that bundles of butter and cheese sounds very appealing to me! And thanks for letting me know about your friend that liked my recipes. That was so lovely to hear! :D x

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  2. As someone who has been known to melt cheese in teh microwave and eat it straight, I think I'd like your version of these ;)

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  3. Yum, these sound (and look) very tasty!

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  4. I'm impressed! Not only do your Cheesy Bikkes look delightful, you managed to serve them up under adverse conditions. I can tell already, that oven is in for a real work out!!!

    Thanks for sharing...

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  5. They look and sound delicious, even if they did not go to plan. Serendipity, I say.

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  6. What exactly is wrong with bundles of butter and cheese :-). I think your biscuits look and sound delicious. This is my first visit to your site so I've taken some time to browse through your earlier entries. I'm so glad I did that. I really like the food and recipes you feature here and I'll definitely be back. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  7. I've definitely had those days in the kitchen where nothing seems to go right. But little pockets of cholesterol seem like the perfect way to make it all feel better! :P

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  8. I dunno - I think your version sound really good!

    And I hate that biscuits tend to be better once they've cooled rather than straight from the oven. They always smell so tempting!

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  9. Thanks Lorraine - sounds like a recipe for you then :-)

    Thanks Hannah - now that is cutting to the chase - love it!

    Thanks C - oh they were delicious

    Thanks Louise - the oven is great but still feel on the learning curve

    Thanks Cakelaw - I think it throws me when a recipe tastes so different to what I expect but yes good all the same

    Thanks Mary - have you ever noticed how greasy butter and cheese can be, esp when warm? but I take your point that there are many worse things in life - glad you enjoyed the blog - look forward to more visits

    Thanks Joanne - I did feel better once I was eating the (cooled) biscuits

    Thanks Agnes - most biscuits I cook (well all the choc chip ones) seem to be so much better warm - has made me expect that I want to eat half the batch before they even cool because they are so good :-)

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  10. I've made that kind of mistake countless times--but at least you ended up with a result that was tasty, eventually! I think "little bundles of cholesterol" sums it up nicely! ;)

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  11. These sound really yummy, especially with the smoked cheese! Too bad they didn't turn out quite as you'd hoped. I hope you figure your oven out soon. I can imagine it's frustrating.

    Okay I just realized the cat on the side of your website follows the mouse cursor haha. I've seen it there before but never noticed that it moved. So cute!

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