My memories of nutmeg go back to when I was about six. I remember being curious about a wrinkly looking seed that was very very hard. I remember mum grating it and magically releasing a tantalising aroma that made me feel happy and fuzzy down to my toes. I remember holding a glass of creamy milk warmed just right with a sprinkling of that magic dust. I remember tasting the warmth and the spice as I tried my very best to form a big white milk moustache to match my white flannel pyjamas. I remember it made me sleepy.
That was nutmeg, in case you are still wondering what I was rambling on about. A spice tree native to Indonesia, it is the only tropical tree responsible for two different spices. Nutmeg, which is the seed of the tree and mace, which is the reddish flaky covering of the seed. Used in many different cuisines in both sweet and savoury dishes, nutmeg has a very distinct sweet and spicy flavour.
I often make a batch of plain old vanilla biscuits using this time tested recipe. I have tweaked it to bake a batch of delicate yet robust flavoured nutmeg butter biscuits. My new biscuit jar needed some tenants and these fitted the bill perfectly.
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NUTMEG BUTTER BISCUITS
Ingredients
- 250 g butter, softened
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup pure icing sugar, sifted
- 1/4 teaspoon cornflour
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 cups plain flour, sifted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C. Line two cookie sheets with baking paper.
- In a large bowl beat butter, sugar, nutmeg and egg yolk for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Add cornflour and plain flour. Using your hands mix it gently until the dough just comes together.
- Chill the dough for 15 minutes. This will make it easier to handle. Roll dough into rounds the size of a cherry tomato. Place on prepared sheets leaving a 5cm gap between rounds.
- Bake in preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes until the bottom of the cookies is browned and the cookies are golden and cooked.
- Remove from the oven, cool completely on trays and store in an air-tight container for up to 2 days (a week in the fridge).
I made a batch and baked half, which tasted very little of nutmeg (I might have used too little). Can anyone recommend something to give more flavor, does not have to be nutmeg.
Currently baking my own I've added vanilla with the nutmeg hoping for a tasty combination
Where did you get that charming little biscuit container? Love it!
In Target. It is a chinese cookie pot 🙂
I want to dunk this delicate yummy cookies in my afternoon tea!
These look really lovely! The styling of your food is amazing!
All of this is so lovely! Love the crumbs... that's definitely what my table looks like after I've eaten.
Tia @ fibreandspice.wordpress.com
What gorgeous cookies Sneh! I love nutmeg, and can imagine how good these smell! I'd love a couple to dunk in my tea.
These biscuits look delicious! I love the combo of nutmeg and butter- I can only imagine how rich and tasty they are.
One of the most beautiful ingredients to me is freshly grated nutmeg. Sometimes I just sit there smelling the grated end of one of the nuts. I love the squiggly pattern inside the nut too. These are just lovely and I cannot wait to make them.
These look yum and remind me of the butter biscuits we get at the bakery near my aunts house in Bangalore.
I too am a Sydney food blogger and I find your blog to be a stunning inspiration.
I am a huge fan of your food photos. Love them and they do the job of urging me to make every dish of yours perfectly! 🙂
I love your teacup, and the delicious looking cookies. So inspirational!
Lovely cookies and great photography and styling. Nutmeg is one of my favorite spices.
I love nutmeg but I clearly haven't experimented with it enough! Love these biscuits and the photos and the jar and the tea cup and the colours and.... Ok! I'll stop now 🙂
I love nutmeg, these biscuits look like they'd be perfect with tea!
I have a weakness for the enchanting aroma of nutmeg. Just need an excuse to use it. This is a great twist to the butter biscuits.
Love the cup and saucers shot! The other white cup with blue prints is a gorgeous too..
My first memory of nutmeg involves my mom grating it onto some (unspiked) egg nog for me. I loved it! I am quite the fan of spiced cookies or cakes or sweets of almost any kind. But what I love about this is the focus on nutmeg. These sound and look lovely!
I love your pictures, so beautiful! Where did you find the cute little teacup xxx
If you have a spare moment please pop over to my little blog:
http://rainingcakeandcookies.blogspot.co.uk
-Alex-Rose
Your biscuit jar is safe since I live so far away!
Lovely little cookies! The flavor of nutmeg is exhalirating.
Cheers,
Rosa
LOVE the photos, the styling, the light, the props, every single bit of it! Nutmeg is also one of my fav spice and I love how just a little bit of freshly grated nutmeg makes a huge difference in flavor.
Nutmeg is the kind of spice that adds that subtle little special something.
I feel like I can taste these already. They sound wonderful.
Wow they look so delicious ! I love your cups too, they're lovely