From Nigel's Kitchen Table
Orange & Lemon Curd Biscuits
Buttery citrus biscuits filled with orange and lemon curd for a bright, tangy afternoon treat.
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The perfect citrus hint in each and every bite of these orange and lemon curd biscuits will get you craving more. The perfect treat to sit down to on a Sunday afternoon or any time, really!
This recipe is a combination of a delicious soft centred biscuit and my homemade lemon curd recipe. Of course, you can always mix it up and make orange curd instead.
CONTENTS
RECIPE HIGHLIGHTS
- EASE: easy.
- TASTE & TEXTURE: a delicious orange biscuit soft in the middle and crisp around the edges, filled with homemade lemon curd.
- SERVING: alongside a cup of tea for the perfect afternoon snack.
- QUANTITY: 30 small sandwich biscuits.
- TIME: 1 hour 43 minutes, includes 1 hour cooling.
INGREDIENTS
For this recipe, all you need are these ingredients:
- Butter – adds structure and flavour. I use salted butter for most of my baking as it intensifies the flavours, but feel free to use unsalted if you prefer. Make sure it’s at room temperature before using.
- Caster or granulated white sugar – adds sweetness and structure.
- Egg – builds structure and brings richness to this recipe. Make sure it is at room temperature before use.
- Orange – use organic if possible as we are using the zest as well as the juice of the orange to flavour our biscuits.
- Vanilla – I use Taylor & Colledge vanilla products, they add a delicious taste to your recipes and enhance the other ingredient flavours: pure vanilla extract, vanilla paste or vanilla pods.
- Plain or all-purpose flour – builds structure and holds all the other ingredients together.
- Baking powder – increases the volume and lightens the texture during baking.
- Lemon curd – is the perfect smooth creamy filling to sandwich between these biscuits. It adds the perfect amount of citrus kick to complement the crisp outer shell and the soft inside of the biscuits.
- Salt – I highly recommend adding a good pinch of fine sea salt to your biscuit dough. It may seem unusual in a sweet recipe, but salt helps balance the sweetness, soften any bitterness and bring out the flavour of ingredients such as chocolate, vanilla, citrus and spices. It should not make the biscuits taste salty; it simply makes every flavour brighter and more rounded.
I like to use Maldon Sea Salt flakes or Cornish Sea Salt, crushed finely before adding, but any good-quality fine sea salt will work well. Do not be tempted to leave it out—it is often the small ingredient that makes the biggest difference.
WHAT VARIATIONS CAN I MAKE?
- Lemon biscuits – for lemon biscuits, simply replace the orange with lemon zest and juice in the biscuit recipe.
NUTRITION
Serving: one sandwich biscuit
STORAGE
These biscuits can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 days. Because of the filling the biscuits start to go soft after this time.
Freezing: These completed biscuits can be frozen for up to a month. To defrost remove from the freezer and place in the fridge to defrost overnight.
TOOLS YOU’LL NEED
Here is a list of some kitchen equipment that I use and recommend for this recipe.
I like the sturdiness of this bowl and its 4-litre capacity means I can use it for mixing just about everything in the kitchen. It is also microwave, freezer, and dishwasher safe.
These different size mixing bowls are really useful depending on the amount of food you are preparing. They also have airtight lids that fit snugly to seal and keep food fresh, great for using as dry storage bowls with lids. The plastic lid of the largest bowl has a removable centre, where one of 3 graters can be used for grating cheese or vegetables.
This small pan is a great size for boiling small amounts of liquids and it has pouring lips built into the rim of the saucepan which makes it easy to use.
- Piping Bags for Cake Icing or Decorating, 3 Pack of Cotton Re-Usable
- Disposable Piping Bags 16″ & 12″ 200 Pieces
I use both a reusable piping bag and disposables, I think it is down to your personal preference and how much icing you are going to be doing.
- Round Piping Nozzles, 5pcs Large Round Piping Tips Set
- Piping Star / rosette nozzle 3-piece, stainless steel rust-proof
- Wilton Cupcake Piping Tip Set with Silicone Stand, 7 Pieces
I have listed both sets of round and star nozzle sets and a mixed set. If you are starting out a mixed set is probably enough.
RECIPE TIPS
Use room temperature – butter and eggs for best results.
Don’t overwork the dough – Once the dough has come together do not continue mixing or the biscuits will become tough.
Ensure to add the cornflour – to the lemon curd or it will be too runny for sandwiching between the biscuits.
Orange & Lemon Curd Biscuits – Revision
INGREDIENTS LIST
- 100 g butter (at room temperature)
- 180 g caster sugar
- 1 medium egg (50g)
- 1 organic orange zested and juiced (50ml juice)
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract or 1/4 tsp of vanilla paste
- 200 g plain flour (all-purpose)
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- a pinch fine sea salt
Other
- 150 g
lemon curd (with added cornstarch) - 30 g icing sugar (US powdered sugar)
Preparation
- I love making my homemade lemon curd for this recipe ensuring to add the cornflour as explained in step one of the recipe. If you want to use shop bought lemon curd, you may find that it is a little runny. To fix this you can mix 1 teaspoon of cornflour with a little cold water and add it to a small saucepan with 300ml lemon curd. Bring the mixture to a slow boil, whisking continuously and then remove from the heat and allow to cool.
- Biscuits: Preheat the oven to 170°C fan / 375°F / Gas 5.
- In a bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and mix until well combined.
- Add the zest of an orange and 50ml (1/4 cup) of juice. Mix well.
- Add the vanilla, flour, salt and baking powder into the bowl and mix together to create a wet creamy dough.
- I like to make small 2cm round biscuits, but you can also make larger versions and there are a couple of ways to portion the individual biscuits. I like to place the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle and pipe out small mounds onto a parchment or silicone-lined baking tray. Alternatively, you can use two teaspoons to drop a small amount of mixture onto the tray. Make sure to leave 2cm between each biscuit to allow for expansion during baking. The mixture will happily flatten out during baking to create a nice round disk.
- Baking: Bake for 6-8 minutes, until slightly browned around the edges.
- Remove from the oven and let rest on the baking tray for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.
- Assembly: Once cooled, spoon or pipe small amounts of the lemon curd onto half of the biscuits. Place a second biscuit on top and place on a plate to serve.Optional: Dust with icing sugar (powdered sugar) to decorate.
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