Category: Biscuit and Cookie Recipes

Follow the links for lots of  biscuit and cookie recipes.  Or have a look at the Recipe Index for lots of other brilliant easy recipes!

Biscuit and Cookie recipes are a great place to start if you are new to home-baking.  They are quick and easy to make and taste so much better than shop-bought varieties.   You will have home-baked treats on the table in under an hour!

I have recipes for sweet and savoury biscuits for all occasions.   All  have a botanical element with flavours of flowers or inclusion of fruit, herbs or spices.

Biscuits (Cookies)

Almond Shortbread with Rosewater

  • Almond shortbread
  • Almond shortbread
  • Almond shortbread

Easy Almond Shortbread recipe flavoured with Rosewater

If you have never baked in your life, this easy Almond Shortbread recipe with a hint of rose flavour, is a fantastic place to start. It is buttery, soft and crumbly and made in under half an hour. Perfect for a morning snack or a teatime treat.

I always add ground almonds to my shortbread as I think they improve both the flavour and texture. Homemade shortbread has a softer texture than the shop-bought version and, if you make your own, you can play around with the flavours a bit. I am a big fan of rose-flavoured recipes and decided to add a bit of rosewater to my usual easy shortbread recipe. I was really pleased with the result which manages to be both comfortingly familiar and a little bit different.

Almond shortbread

What you need to know about Almond Shortbread

  • This is a really easy recipe which makes it perfect for those who are not experienced bakers. It is also a great recipe if you want to cook with younger children or for older children to cook by themselves. I made a version of this recipe (without the rosewater) when I was in primary school whenever we visited by grandfather who was extremely fond of shortbread.
  • It is also a very quick recipe – from bowl to table in under half an hour. This makes it great for a bit of spontaneous weekend baking but also good if you suddenly need to make something quickly. It has saved the day for me on several occasions when I have realised that I have not produced anything for the school bake sale. Not many baked goods can be produced in the time it takes to have breakfast.
  • The quantities in this recipe make eight thick pieces of shortbread. However, it is really easy to make more by doubling the ingredients and either using two 20 cm (8 inch) pie tins or one 30 cm (12 inch) tin. Make sure that the depth of the mixture in the tin is about one cm (half an inch).
  • I always use butter in this recipe as I prefer the flavour. However, if you are a vegan or wish to avoid dairy products, you can use a non-dairy substitute instead of the butter.
  • In this recipe, I flavoured my shortbread with culinary rosewater, which is available from most supermarkets. However, if you prefer a plain shortbread you can just leave it out.
Almond shortbread

Other rose-flavoured recipes

I love to use rosewater as a flavouring. If you are inspired by this shortbread recipe, you might like to have a look at my Rose and Strawberry Cream Cake as another teatime treat. For dessert, you could try Rose and Raspberry Pavlova, Rose Meringues or fragrant Rose Ice-cream.

Other easy shortbread and biscuit recipes

Baking shortbread or biscuits (cookies) is a really good place to start for inexperienced bakers. They are generally very easy and do not take very long to bake. If you like this recipe, you might also like my Lavender Shortbread or simple Lemon Biscuits (Cookies). I also have a great Cheese Biscuit recipe, which you can make with or without chilli, if you want a savoury snack.

Loved this recipe? Checkout the Recipe Index.

  • Rub the butter and flour together
  • Add the sugar, almonds and rosewater
  • Place in a baking tin
  • Press down the mixture and place in oven
Almond shortbread

Recipe for Almond Shortbread with Rosewater

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Almond shortbread

Almond Shortbread with Rosewater

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Tastebotanical
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 15
  • Total Time: 25 minutes
  • Yield: 8 pieces of shortbread 1x
  • Category: Biscuits
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: English
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Description

This simple Almond Shortbread, flavoured with rosewater, is soft and crumbly and made in under half an hour.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 180 g (6 oz) plain flour
  • 125 g (4 oz) butter
  • 55 g (2 oz) caster sugar
  • 60 g (2 oz) ground almonds
  • 1 teaspoon of culinary rosewater
  • A little extra caster sugar

Almond shortbread

Instructions

  1. Set your oven to 180 C, 350 F or Gas Mark 4. 
  2. Sift the flour into a large bowl.  Add the butter and combine –  either by “rubbing in” by hand or processing – until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.  
  3. Stir in the sugar and the ground almonds.
  4. Add the rosewater.
  5. Tip the mixture into a 20 cm (8 inch) loose-based pie tin.   Press the mixture into the tin using the back of a spoon.   
  6. Put the tin into the oven and bake for 15 minutes.   The shortbread will be done when it is light golden brown in colour.
  7. Remove from the oven.  Score the shortbread into segments eight segments using a sharp knife.  Sprinkle with a little caster sugar while still warm.  Allow the shortbread to cool in the tin.

Keywords: shortbread, almond, rose, easy

This recipe has been shared on #CookBlogShare with the Lost in Food and #Fiesta Friday with Fiesta Friday  and  Laurena @ Life Diet Health

Loved this recipe? Checkout the Recipe Index.

Ginger Biscuits (Ginger Cookies)

  • Ginger Biscuits
  • Ginger Biscuits
  • Ginger Biscuits
  • Ginger Biscuits

Easy Ginger Biscuits (Ginger Cookies)

These easy Ginger Biscuits are a bit different from a traditional ginger cookie or ginger biscuit recipe. I think of them as a cross between a flapjack and a brandy-snap. They are very quick to bake, only 10 minutes in the oven, and have a base of oats with sugar and butter, a small amount of flour and an egg. The ginger flavour comes from finely chopped pieces of stem ginger that are added to the mixture. Flaked almonds also give a bit of extra crunch and nuttiness.

This recipe is based on one that my mother used to make. She used candied peel, rather than stem ginger, in her recipe. I am not a huge fan of candied peel and I had a half-used jar of stem ginger left over from Christmas so I decided to try make a ginger-flavoured version. I was also looking for a baking recipe that did not use a lot of flour as I am finding it hard to get hold of this at the moment.

These Ginger Biscuits have a subtle ginger flavour which even those who are not big ginger fans seem to like. The biscuits themselves are chewy with a bit of crunch around the edges and are sweet and buttery.

Things you need to know about these Ginger Biscuits (Ginger Cookies)
  • They are very quick and easy to make. Just mix all the ingredients together and pop them in the oven for 10 minutes.
  • The only slightly tricky stage is getting the cooked biscuits off the baking tray. The key is to make sure that the baking tray is very well greased and that you do not try and take the biscuits off immediately they come out of the oven (they will be too soft) or leave it too long (they will be welded to the baking tray!). If you leave it for about 5 minutes, that is just about right and it should be quite straightforward to get them off.
  • Don’t leave out the pinch of salt. It makes a big difference to the taste of the biscuits as it balances out the sweetness.
  • They are very versatile. Have them with a cup of morning coffee or afternoon tea. Add them to lunch boxes. Or they are also a very nice addition to a bowl of ice cream.
  • I used stem ginger for this recipe. This is candied ginger in its own syrup which you can buy in most supermarkets. It is one of my favourite ingredients as a little goes a long way and, in addition to the globes of sweet ginger, you can also use the syrup as a flavouring. However, if you do not have stem ginger to hand, you could use pieces of crystallised ginger which can be found in the baking aisle in most supermarkets.
  • If ginger is not your thing, you could substitute the stem ginger for the same amount of mixed peel. Or you could just leave out the ginger and you would still have a delicious, oaty, buttery biscuit.
Other teatime treats

If you are a fan of ginger, you might like my Ginger and Pear Cake or Gingerbread Loaf Cake . If you are in the mood for a different kind of biscuit, you could try my Lavender Shortbread or Lemon Biscuits. Or if you are a savoury kind of person then Cheese Biscuits might hit the spot. I also have a lot of recipes for very easy loaf cakes including St Clement’s Cake, Apple Cake, Coconut Cake, Blood Orange Cake, Cherry and Almond Cake, Earl Grey Cake, Latte Cake with Salted Caramel, Lavender Cake, Lemon Drizzle Cake, Rhubarb Crumble Cake and Rum Banana Bread.

Ginger Biscuits
How to make Ginger Biscuits (Ginger Cookies)
  • Put the oats in a bowl
  • Add the sugar and flour
  • Take the stem ginger and..
  • …chop finely
  • Add the melted butter and egg to the bowl
  • Add the chopped ginger and flaked almonds
  • Stir to combine
  • Spoon on to a greased baking tray
  • Ginger Biscuits
    Bake for 10 minutes and remove to a baking rack to cool

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Ginger Biscuits

Ginger Biscuits (Ginger Cookies)

★★★★★ 5 from 3 reviews
  • Author: Tastebotanical
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 10
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: About 30 biscuits or cookies 1x
  • Category: Biscuits
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: English
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Description

These quick and easy Ginger Biscuits (or Ginger Cookies) are crisp and buttery with a subtle note of ginger.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil

  • 100 g (4 oz) rolled oats

  • 100 g (4 oz) soft brown sugar

  • 100 g (4 oz) caster sugar

  • 1 tablespoon flour

  • 25 g  (1 oz) flaked almonds

  • Salt

  • 100 g (4 oz) butter

  • 1 egg

  • 50 g (2 oz) stem ginger

     

Instructions

  1. Set your oven to 170 C, 325 F or Gas Mark 3.
  2. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment.  Pour half a teaspoon of vegetable oil onto each sheet and spread over the entire surface using your fingers or a pastry brush.
  3. Put the rolled oats, soft brown sugar, caster sugar, flour, almonds and a pinch of salt into a large mixing bowl.
  4. Melt the butter in a microwave or in a small saucepan.  Add the melted butter to the dry ingredients.  Then stir in the egg.
  5. Finely chop the stem ginger and add it to the mixture.
  6. Drop teaspoons of the mixture onto the prepared baking sheets making sure that you leave a four centimetre gap between each one as they will spread out when they are in the oven.
  7. Put the baking sheets into the oven for 10-12 minutes.
  8. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and allow the biscuits to cool on them for five minutes before removing them with a palette knife or spatula.  Place them on a baking rack to cool completely.

Ginger Biscuits

Keywords: biscuits, cookies, ginger, easy

This recipe has been shared on #CookBlogShare with Recipes Made Easy and #Fiesta Friday with Fiesta Friday and Antonia @ Zoale.com and Zeba @ Food For The Soul.

Loved this recipe? You may also like the following recipes. Or checkout the Recipe Index.
Lavender shortbread, lavender cookies, lavender biscuits, lavender hearts
Lavender shortbread
Ginger and Pear Cake
Ginger and Pear Cake

Cheese Biscuits

  • Cheese Biscuits
  • Cheese Biscuits
  • Cheese Biscuits
  • Cheese Biscuits

Home-made Cheese Biscuits with Chilli

These Cheese Biscuits with Chilli are a heated-up version of a basic cheese biscuit recipe. They are fantastic as a snack with drinks as they are deliciously cheesy and pack a big load of chilli heat. I think they go particularly well with a beer!

I have been making the basic biscuits for years and if you are not a lover of spicy food, you can leave out the chilli. If you are serving them with wine, the non-spicy version might be better. Or you could do a batch and put chilli in one half.

I have a taste for savoury, salty snacks, which I try to moderate generally and indulge occasionally. One of the good things about making your own snacks is that you are in control of the salt levels. Adding strong flavour elements, such as chilli, also helps with this as it means that the snacks have a powerful hit of flavour without being overly salty.

Whether you are looking for a plate of snacks ready for a box-set binge evening or for a drinks party, these Cheese Biscuits with Chilli are fantastic. They will keep in a sealed tin for several days once baked. Even better, you can keep the dough in the refridgerator for a week and slice and cook the biscuits when you want to eat them. You can also freeze the dough for several months. I always prepare a large batch of cheese biscuit dough in the run-up to Christmas and refridgerate or freeze which means that I can have freshly baked home-made biscuits within minutes.

If you are in a snacking mood, you might also like to try my recipes for Spiced Nuts and Marinated Feta. Both are really easy and are great at a party or if you are just watching television with a cold beer!

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Cheese Biscuits

Cheese Biscuits

  • Author: Tastebotanical
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 10
  • Total Time: 20 plus 60 minutes rest time
  • Yield: Around 30 biscuits 1x
  • Category: Biscuits
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: English
Print Recipe

Description

Whether you make these Cheese Biscuits with or without chilli, they are a fantastic snack with drinks or for a box-set binge.  The dough can be kept in the fridge or freezer and baked whenever you feel like fresh home-made biscuits.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 100 g butter (at room temperature)
  • 100 g strong cheese (eg Cheddar)
  • 100 g plain flour
  • 1 teaspoon chilli flakes

 

Instructions

  1. Put all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until combined to form a dough.
  2. Roll the dough into a sausage shape, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge to chill for an hour.
  3. Set your oven to 180 degrees C or Gas Mark 4.
  4. Remove the dough from the fridge and cut across to form disks approximately 1 cm thick.
  5. Place the disks on a greased baking tray and bake in the oven for 10 minutes until golden.
  6. Remove from the oven and place the biscuits on a baking rack to cool.

Notes

  • If you don’t like chilli, you can leave it out.  The plain, cheese biscuits are delicious too! 
  • The baked biscuits will keep for several days in an air-tight tin.
  • The dough can be kept in the fridge for a week.  So that you can cut it into discs and bake for home-made biscuits within minutes.
  • The dough can also be frozen for several months.

Keywords: biscuits, cookies, savoury biscuits, chilli, cheese biscuits

Loved this recipe? You may also like the following recipes. Or checkout the Recipe Index.

Marinated Feta

Marinated Feta

Spiced Nuts

Spiced Nuts

Baked Eggs with Cheese

Baked Eggs with Cheese