A Melting Moment
from the Monday Bakery
~Melting Moments Biscuits/Cookies~
I had a wonderful day baking yesterday, I did some batch baking to top up the cake and biscuit tins for the week ahead as we have guests and I always like to offer tea with cakes and biscuits in the afternoon. The weather was foul ~ wet, windy and dark all day, so I turned the radio on and made a big pot of tea before suggesting my husband might like to “play” in his workshop at the back of the house and then baked to my heart’s content!
I cooked a simple brunch before I leapt into action in the kitchen, a treat for both of us as it was Sunday, good old bacon and eggs ~ we watch what we eat and don’t have this classic British breakfast dish very often, so consequently we both lapped it up; we also had a big pot of tea on the go with lashings of toast and home-made raspberry jam afterwards! I think it was the weather that made us both feel like a comforting “fry up”, although I did grill the bacon and fried the eggs in just a little olive oil…..
I used the best china too, I love drinking from fine cups and saucers ~ we are normally “mugs of tea” people throughout the week, but it’s nice to liberate the Sunday Best, High Days and Feast Days china and try to act refined now and then. I even brought out a “fresh” tea cosy ~ knitted by my husband’s mum, she made us dozens of them in all shapes, colours and sizes and I love them, as do our B and B guests too.
Back to my baking ~ one of my bakes today was a batch of Melting Moments, how I LOVE these unassuming little biscuits of my childhood.
They are wonderful little “light as a feather” and meltingly crisp English biscuits (cookies). The recipe that I use is slightly adapted from the Be-Ro Flour cookbook ~ they suggest lard, but I don’t “do” lard. Melting Moments ALWAYS made an appearance on my grandmother and mum’s afternoon tea table, and we also had them popped into our lunch boxes for school.
The recipe is SO easy to rustle up and they stay crisp and fresh for up to 5 days in an airtight tin. You can roll them in coconut or oats, I prefer coconut – but I am sure they would be just as nice with oats, which is a suggested alternative. Children and “big children” love these, and they really are melting moments, great with a cuppa English tea.
I will be sharing some of my other baked goodies later on in the week, but for now, here is a my Melting Moments recipe, enough to melt a man’s heart and bring a smile to any child’s face ~ although not too many for me as they don’t agree with my waistband! Enjoy these with a cup of tea or coffee and they also make great offerings for charity coffee mornings etc.
Melting Moments (Biscuits/Cookies)
Ingredients:
100g (4ozs) Butter or margarine
75g (3ozs) caster sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
150g (5ozs) Self Raising flour
oats or dessicated coconut
glacé cherries, quartered
Method:
Heat oven to 180ºC, 350ºF, Gas Mark 4.
Grease two baking trays.
Cream the butter or margarine and the sugar until very light and fluffy.
Beat in the egg and vanilla essence.
Stir in the flour and mix well.
Roll walnut sized pieces of the mixture into balls and toss in rolled oats or desiccated coconut.
Place on baking trays, flatten slightly and place a small piece of cherry on each biscuit.
Bake for 10-15 minutes.
(N.B. To help shape “ball” type biscuits, slightly dampen the hands.)
See you tomorrow and have a great start to the new week.
Karen
These look lovely and take me back to my childhood! Must get round to trying this. X
Those look fabulous Karen! (as always)xxoo
These were the first biscuits I was taught to make by my Mother. And like you I still love them. These and rock cakes always go down well.
Sometimes it is nice to have eggs and bacon and to drink from 'proper' cups with saucers as my Mother used to say.
Mmmmm cookies!! They look delicious!! Not too many ingredients – will have to try these!
Thanks working london mummy ~ I think these are a real taste of my childhood too.
Thanks Marie ~ I thought you were on holiday so thanks for taking time to come and comment!
Karen
Kentish Keg~Meg ~ you and me both, my mum taught me how to make these and rock cakes too!
Thanks!
Karen
Thanks Reds ~ you will love these and so easy to make too!
Ooh, that brought back memories! My very first ever cookery lesson at school these were what we made 🙂
They do look wonderful..Thank you.
Just lovely, I can SO relate to such a lovely day, wild and windy outside and left alone to bake to your hearts content – perfect! I too love a cup of tea in a bone china cup and saucer. Just printed out the recipe and will make a batch today – thanks!
Mary
Sometimes the simplest treats are the best! Love your Mum-in-Law's tea cosy and the "Sunday Best" china!
Melting moments are of the moment. They seem to have made a come back as I see them popping up all over the net. I haven't made these since I was a teenager but have fond memories of them. I like the idea of rolling them in coconut – I think I used to roll them in oats.
I hadn't realised you had a B&B as well – I bet your guests love you with all those goodies. And you're so right, it's good to get the best china out from time to time.
I've never made these before but they look really easy. I think I would roll them in oats and leave off the cherry as I just don't like them…never did. And with seeing the cuppa tea…I just had to go make myself one!
It's good to discover your blog – and you have reminded me to dig out my BeRo cookbook! We run a B&B too and just like you I always give my guests homemade cakes at tea time.
Pomona x
WOnderful post. Love the story of the tea cozies. And beautiful cookies.
We want a reveal day… what does the B&B look like?
The Be-Ro cook book is possibly one of my most loved little books. My Nanna still has her copy, as does my Mum and now me. I plan to buy a couple for my sons in case they should ever go out of print. x
I made this cookies yesterday and loved it! Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks Annie, they do bring back memories, they always do when I make them and eat them…….
Merci Monique!
Hope they made you feel warm and cosy Mary ~ let me know how they came out! Thanks!
Karen
Thanks Jewel!
Karen
Thanks Choclette! MY B and B has been a bad influence on my china buying escapades, I am always buying vintage china for the B and B!! I subsequently have cupboards full!
I think Melting Moments should be the biscuit of the moment, they are nostalgia and comfort in a bite!
Karen
I agree about the cherries Terri, but I never really notice them on these biscuits! Oats would be good too!
Karen
Hello Pomona, I am now following you! Thanks so much for popping by and commenting……Karen
Thanks Dave ~I PROMISE I will post more photos of the B and B soon!
Karen
Welcome and thanks Holly! I LOVE my Be-Ro books, and am lucky enough to have my grandmothers and a few other old copies too! You can still buy them in the supermarkets near Be-Ro flour as well as send away for them!
Karen
Thanks Sofia, so glad you enjoyed these! LOVELY!
Karen
They look lovely. I like coconut in biscuits.