Oat and Walnut Biscuits

These are delightful, unpretentious little biscuits that are quick and easy to bake. A gluten-free version is just as easy, just as nice.

Makes: 20 or more

Time: 40 minutes + cooling

Level: Nice and easy

Equipment: 2 x baking trays lined with baking parchment and lightly floured

Ingredients

• 75g/2.5oz Oatmeal or oat bran (or just omit and increase the flour )
• 175g/6oz Plain flour (Use a “Free From” type for a Gluten free bake)
• ¼tsp bi-carbonate of soda
• ¼tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon (or 2 tsp if you like cinnamon)
• 1 tsp ground ginger (as above)
• 75g/2.5oz oats
• 100g/3.5oz golden caster sugar or light brown soft sugar
• 75g/2.5oz – 100g/3.5oz walnuts broken into small pieces
• 45g/1.5oz unsalted butter
• 15g/0.5oz lard (e.g. Trex)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• About 30ml/1fl oz milk – as/if required

Method

1. Oven on at 210C / fan 190C /405F / Gas 6. Line two baking trays with baking parchment.

2. Put oatmeal, flour, bi-carb, salt, cinnamon, ginger, oats, sugar & walnuts in a bowl and mix.

3. Melt butter & lard together and add vanilla extract.

4. Add fats to dry ingredients. Mix well.

5. Bring the dough together by hand, adding milk if and when required. It should be firm and malleable, neither soggy nor dry.  

6. Either mould the dough into a flat circle, wrap in cling film, and put in the fridge for half an hour or, if you’re short of time, just dig in and mould into balls about the size of a walnut. (Wetting your hands occasionally makes it easier.)

7. Place on the baking trays and bake for 15 – 16 minutes*. They don’t spread massively, but leave a reasonable gap. Leave on the trays for 5 minutes then place on a wire rack to cool fully.

*Even though I use a fan oven I still find I get a more even bake if, halfway through, I transfer the baking trays to different shelves, turning them around at the same time.

Originally. I put these biscuits together as a gluten free bake because I wanted to make a biscuit based cheesecake for a friend who can’t have gluten and I was too lazy (or too frugal) to drive to the supermarket to buy gluten free biscuits. I thought they’d “do the job” and taste OK, but they came out so well that they may not last long enough to make a cheesecake. We’ll see, if I post the relevant cheesecake recipe soon, you’ll know.

One final point to mention is that if you do make it a gluten free bake, there’s no need to add in any xanthan gum powder. I didn’t bother and they came out fine.