Gingernut Biscuits

Today's weather is truly horrific, and quite the contrast to last week.  Strange to think that just two days ago it was beautifully sunny and Scotland reached record breaking temperatures for this time of year.  Then today we've had snow, sleet and hail.  Yuck.  Very much not something you want to go out in.  But a perfect excuse for baking.  

This recipe was something my boyfriend's Mum found in Good Housekeeping magazine.  She likes gingernut biscuits and since we had all the ingredients to hand I whipped a batch up.  It's a very simple recipe though unfortunately a number of them caught in the oven, so are a bit singed around the edges.  One was completely burnt.  The temperature in our oven varies greatly so in future I'll need to keep a closer eye on them.

Both my boyfriend's Mum and her mother tried the biscuits after I made them.  The consensus was that they were delicious and wonderfully crunchy. 

Recipe - adapted from Good Housekeeping May 2012 - makes 16

• 100g/3.5oz self-raising flour
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 50g/2oz butter
• 75g/3oz golden syrup

1. Prepare two baking trays with greaseproof paper and preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/Gas mark 5.
2. In a large-ish bowl, sift all the dry ingredients together (so everything except the butter and syrup).
3. In a small saucepan put the butter and the syrup and heat until the butter melts.
4. Pour syrup mix into the dry ingredients and stir well to make a dough.  It'll be a bit sticky.
5. With lightly floured hands, break off some of the dough, roll into a ball (about 3cm in diameter) and place on the tray.  Space them out well and flatten slightly.  Keep going until you have 16 biscuits or you use up all your mixture.
6. Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes.  It depends on how crunchy you want them to be.  The longer they are in, the harder they will be.  Do watch them carefully though as they catch really easily.  They will come out the oven soft but harden as they cool.
7. Allow to cool before serving, preferably with a warm drink.