Spoon-dent biscuits with lemon curd

Everyone loves a good biscuit. You can admit it here with me. Some of us could be touted as loving them more than others. I am not mentioning any names, but I had better stop speaking of them in this manner or you may begin to think I have some sort of obsession with biscuits.

If you have been following our blogs, you will remember B. Yes, B is still around...... and, it just may be that she will bake again very soon! You will remember she made some yummy jam drops not so long ago which are a true favourite in this house, and I can reveal that one batch is just never enough especially if the father of M and B pops over!

Re-visiting some of my many Donna Hay mags, I came across a biscuit recipe, of course, from the Jun/Jul 2007 issue, which is going back a few years now. Instead of jam, Donna has used lemon curd as the filling. I thought, how good is that, as I make up a quantity of lemon curd from time to time in this house.

The little people on the other hand, were a little sceptical about changing from their beloved "jam drop". They had never seen anything but jam in their jam drops!! I was certain they wouldn't turn up their little noses. After all, we are talking "biscuits" here!

I am here to confirm that they were a huge hit and will certainly be on the regular baking list in this house. The quantity of curd allows for a double batch of the biscuits.

You will need:
180g unsalted butter, softened
1 cup caster sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg
2 cups plain flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
lemon curd
1/2 cup lemon juice
125g unsalted butter, chopped
1 cup caster sugar
3 eggs, beaten

To make the lemon curd, place the lemon juice, butter, sugar and eggs in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of rapidly simmering water. Cook, stirring continuously, for 20 minutes or until the mixture had thickened slightly. Refrigerate until cool and thick.

For the biscuits, place the butter, sugar and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until light and creamy. Add the egg and beat well. Stir through the flour and baking powder and mix to form a dough.

Roll 2 teaspoons of mixture into balls. Place on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper, allowing room for the biscuits to spread. Press deep dents into the middle of the balls with the back of a small teaspoon, wetting the teaspoon if the dough starts to stick.

Fill each of the indents with 1/2 teaspoon of the cooled lemon curd. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes or until golden.

Happy baking! M x