Chocolate and peppermint creams

Ever been totally stuck on ideas for birthday gifts for that one person who has EVERYTHING and that is very hard to buy for? (a bit like B really. Well, she doesn't have everything but is hard to buy for!). I know when I recieve a homemade gift or a home cooked something I think it's just that little more special and made with love and care. I love giving a home made gift and always love seeing the smile on their face as they take that first bite into something you have worked so hard on......priceless!

I'm pretty sure I have mentioned before how much I love chocolate. My favourite chocolate partner flavour if I had to choose one would be peppermint. Actually anything with a mint flavour is my weakness just like B and her weakness for caramel. These peppermint creams were heavy on the chocolate flavour and were quite a dense texture, they weren't a light crunchy biscuit texture but more like a cake texture with the beautiful peppermint cream joining the two biscuits together. They were very easy to make and I made them as Christmas presents for some family members. My three darlings were impressed but they are impressed by the mere mention of the word "chocolate" so I knew I was on a winner with this one.
Another Donna Hay recipe from issue 60 (which would rate high on my most used list) Dec/Jan 2012 page 182. This issue has lots of biscuit ideas for gifts and I hope you love it just as much as I do.

You will need:
150g butter, softened
1/2 cup (90g) brown sugar
1/2 cup (175g) golden syrup
1 1/2 cups (225g) plain flour, sifted
1/4 cup (25g) Dutch cocoa, sifted
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of baking soda, sifted
200g dark chocolate, chopped
peppermint cream
2 1/2 cups (400g) icing sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
2 tablespoons milk

Place the butter, sugar and golden syrup in an electric mixer and beat for 8-10 minutes or until pale and creamy.

Add the flour, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda and beat until a smooth dough forms.

Add the chocolate pieces and mix until well combined. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes or until firm.
Preheat oven to 180 degrees ( 350F). Roll 1 tablespoonful of the dough into balls at a time. Place on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper and flatten slightly, leaving room to spread.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the tops are cracked. Allow to cool on wire racks.
To make the peppermint cream, place the icing sugar, peppermint extract and milk in a bowl and beat with a hand-held electric mixer for 3-4 minutes or until smooth.

Spread half the biscuits with the peppermint cream and sandwich with remaining biscuits.

Enjoy! M x