My gran, who we called ‘Ouma’, always used to have these gorgeous melt in your mouth biscuits on hand whenever we went to visit her. They bring back very fond memories of her and her farmhouse kitchen, which was always filled with the aroma of something yummy in the oven. They are extremely easy to make, and a real treat when served with tea or coffee. Children also seem to love them!
Makes about 30 cookies
Ingredients:
60g of icing sugar (powdered)
180g of butter
180g of all purpose flour
60g of custard powder (or use 60g of cornflour plus 1 tsp of vanilla extract)
Red glace cherries for decorating
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease a large non-stick baking tray, and line with grease proof paper. Grease again. (I use a silicone mat instead.)
- In a large bowl, beat together the icing sugar and butter using an electric egg beater.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and custard powder.
- Gradually incorporate the flour/ custard powder mixture into the butter/ icing sugar mix, switching to a wooden spoon if the beater takes strain.
- Using floured hands, roll walnut-sized pieces of the dough into little balls. Place them on the baking tray, and flatten each ball with the back of a fork. Dip the fork in icing sugar to prevent sticking.
- Push half a glace cherry on each biscuit.
- Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until just firm to the touch. Do not overbake them, or they will become hard and brittle. Cool slightly, then transfer to a wire cake/ cookie stand. When completely cool, store in an airtight container for up to a week. Enjoy!
PS: For a bit of a change, I sometimes substitute half of the butter for peanut butter. The result: Peanut Butter Custard Cookies. Need I say more?
