Zebra Biscuits
As nearly all of the letters in the alphabet have been used up, we’ve now arrived at the letter Z for AlphaBakes. Initially I was a little puzzled as to what to make as zuccini isn’t in season in this part of the world and I didn’t fancy making zabaglione. Then I remembered the recipe I’d bookmarked ages ago for two-chocolate zebras, but couldn’t actually remember which book it was in. I hastened to my bookshelves and had a quick rifle through. Ah, there it was in Linda Collister’s The Great British Bake Off with a piece of paper marking the page. Now was obviously the time to make them.
This is how I made:
Zebra Biscuits
- Creamed 125g unsalted butter with 100g vanilla (caster) sugar until light and fluffy.
- Beat in 1/2 tsp vanilla extract.
- Beat in 1 large egg.
- Sifted in 250g flour (half wholemeal spelt, half white) with ½ tsp baking powder and a pinch of pink Himalayan rock salt.
- Stirred this all together until all incorporated. Formed the dough into a ball, then divided into two equal pieces.
- Melted 45g white chocolate (vanillary G&B) gently in a bowl over hot water, then added it to one half of the dough, mashing it together until fully incorporated.
- Melted 45g of 85% dark chocolate (vanillary G&B) gently in the same bowl over hot water then added to the other half of the dough, again mashing together until all incorporated.
- Left in my cold kitchen to harden up for about 20 minutes.
- Rolled both pieces of dough out to form rectangles of 20 x 15 cm.
- Placed one on top of the other, then cut lengthways into three equal pieces.
- Placed these one on top of each to form a long rectangle of six layers. Pressed down gently.
- Cut slices (approx 5mm) and laid them on a lined baking tray. I only got 33 rather than the requisite 40 – obviously didn’t make mine quite thin enough.
- Left in the cool to harden up for a bit then baked at 180°C for 10 mins until the white stripes were just golden (or slightly more so in some cases!)
- Transferred onto a wire rack to cool.
Fiddly biscuits are not really my thing, but I was glad I made these as they looked quite impressive and weren’t nearly as fiddly as I thought they were going to be. They were also quite delicious with the sweet white chocolate contrasting nicely with the less sweet and more intense dark layers. The biscuits were nice and crisp with a buttery taste and it was hard to stop at only one – so I didn’t.
Z is for Zebra Biscuits for this month’s AlphaBakes with Caroline Makes and Ros of The More Than Occasional Baker.
I’ve had this recipe bookmarked ever since I first got the book The Great British Bake Off: Have to Bake by Linda Collister so I’m submitting this to Jac’s Bookmarked Recipes over at Tinned Tomatoes.
I’m also entering these into The Biscuit Barrel with Laura of I’d Much Rather Bake Than … who has chosen chocolate as this month’s theme.
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Our Monthly Chocolate Challenge
Alicia Foodycat
11th February 2014
Cute! I’ve made a zebra cake in the past, but zs are hard to come by!
Choclette
12th February 2014
Yes indeed, especially at night 😉
Johanna GGG
11th February 2014
Nice idea for Z – I looked at this theme and wondered what on earth you would make. These look quite fancy too
Choclette
12th February 2014
Thanks Johanna. Not the sort of biscuit I would normally make, but I’m glad I did as they weren’t nearly as much effort as I thought they’d be. Although I would like to know how to cut clean slices so the colours don’t leach.
fiona maclean
11th February 2014
laughing at your non-fiddly biscuits! ANY baking is fiddly to me!!!
Choclette
12th February 2014
Oh rubbish Fiona, you are quite a baker these days 🙂
Tammy
11th February 2014
Oooh don’t those look good!! Perfect with a cup of tea 🙂
Toodles,
Tammy<3
Choclette
12th February 2014
Thank you Tammy. Jolly good idea. Just off to make myself a cup of tea and get a biscuit 😉
Corina
11th February 2014
These look good. For a while I’ve been thinking of making some snail biscuits using a similar method but haven’t quite got around to it yet.
Choclette
12th February 2014
Snail biscuits sound interesting Corina. Is that the same sort of thing but in a roll?
GG
11th February 2014
Zebra biscuits are great, not too fiddly. GG
Choclette
12th February 2014
Ahh, that is what I have now discovered Amanda – phew!
prwilson
12th February 2014
What a neat idea.
Choclette
12th February 2014
Thank you 🙂
Jane Sarchet
12th February 2014
They’re so cute and I bet they taste scrummy
Janie x
Choclette
12th February 2014
Thanks Jane, we’re enjoying the contrast between the sweet white and bitter dark chocolate layers.
Karen S Booth
12th February 2014
FAB name for striped biscuits and a GREAT entry for Alphabakes too! LOVE these! Karen
Choclette
12th February 2014
Thanks Karen – if I’d photographed them sideways on, they might have actually born a bit more resemblance to the real thing #liveandlearn
belleau kitchen
12th February 2014
SUCH a good idea!.. love these and such a brilliant idea for AlphaBakes… they look so pretty. x
Choclette
12th February 2014
Haha, yes #Alphabakes was a bit of a toughy this month. Thanks Dom 🙂
Caroline
12th February 2014
Great idea for Alphabakes, thanks for entering! Glad we’ve had a biscuit entry and not just cake as well.
Ren Behan
12th February 2014
Clever lady, I couldn’t think of a Z recipe! Inspired 🙂
Catherine
12th February 2014
Beautiful and imaginative. Blessings dear. Catherine xo
Laura Denman
12th February 2014
I’ve made these before so I know they are very addictive but yours look much bett than mine! I wish I had thought of using zebra as my Z in a cake and I probably still would if I had the time for a second entry but I’m not sure I will now sadly but we shall see! Thank you so much for sharing them with the Biscuit Barrel challenge =)
Lou, Eat Your Veg
12th February 2014
What ingenuity on the letter Z Choclette! They look mightily yummy, I’d happily wolf down a few with a cuppa. Yes please!
Jacqueline Meldrum
12th February 2014
Hmmmmmm, not sure they would come out like that if I made them 🙂
cityhippyfarmgirl
13th February 2014
so that’s what these little biscuits are called! I make them, but call them layer biscuits…zebra biscuits is so much nicer.
Angie Schneider
13th February 2014
Beautiful stripes! These cookies look lovely!
Morgan @ Peaches, Please!
15th February 2014
Cute cookies. I like the whole “alphabakes” concept. And go you getting all the way to “Z.”
Sylvia F.
16th February 2014
They look so cute! Would love to have them with my coffee 😉
The Caked Crusader
16th February 2014
Very cute. I suspect I would eat them along their lines rather than bite across…but I can be odd like that!
Nayna Kanabar
18th February 2014
These look wonderful I am going to book mark and try.
Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours
19th February 2014
Lovely attractive biscuits.
I rarely bake biscuits as I always burn them underneath and having lived with my gas oven for 11 years have only just learn the trick of standing another baking tray underneath them. Onwards to lots of biscuits now.
Tina Anand
21st February 2014
These look very pretty.