Peanut Cracker Biscuits

Wotchers!

Here we are at week two of my biscuit bonanza and the first of a very short (2) sub-series of Delicious Biscuits With Unusual Stuff Added To Them (might have to work on the title).

This is also a cookie that has been adapted into a biscuit, because crisp biscuits are best. (Spoiler Alert: Tune in next time where I completely contradict myself on this.)

ANYHOO…

I like this biscuit not only for its crispness – which is mighty – but also because it is not overly sweet, and has a definite saltiness to it onna count of the aforementioned Unusual Stuff added to it.

Firstly, there’s peanuts. Roasted. Salted. Chopped into smaller pieces (a faff, I know, but necessary to avoid the biscuits becoming HUGE and UNWEILDY. And an unwieldy biscuit is not a pretty sight).

Then we have crushed up salty crackers like these (available in the supermarkets).

The lack of fat and sugar in the crackers makes for little pockets of dry, crunchy dullness – MARVEL at how I am really selling this biscuit – dull in a good way, because it is against this plain background the rich roasty flavour of the peanuts can really shine.

The peanuts are crunchy, the cracker pieces are crunchy, there’s a delicious lick of salt aftertaste: they beat biscuits made with peanut butter hands down.

They’re perfect for a little salty-sweet treat. Go on, treat yourselves.

Peanut Cracker Biscuits

I like a really crunchy biscuit, but they might not be to everyone’s tastes, so I suggest trying a test bake of just one or two at the lower baking time. Be sure to allow them to cool completely before tasting and deciding, as they will firm up as they cool. If you’re happy with the crunch, stick with the baking time. If you like something a bit crisper, bake a little longer.

60g unsalted butter, softened
45g cream cheese, softened
150g soft brown sugar
2tbs treacle
½ large egg
90g plain flour
30g cornflour
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp salt
80g salted peanuts
2 x portion packets Doriano crackers

• Chop the peanuts into pieces the size of a small pea. Chop the crackers into similar sizes.
• Put the butter, cream cheese, sugar, treacle and egg into a bowl and whisk until smoothly combined.
• Sift together the flours, soda and salt and add to the butter mixture and fold in.
• Fold in the peanuts and the cracker pieces.
• Lay out heaped teaspoons (15g or so) of the mixture onto some baking parchment and put into the freezer for 30-45 minutes to firm up.
• When firm, roll into balls (about the size of a large grape/cherry tomato) and lay onto Silpat/parchment-lined baking sheets. These will spread a little, but not as much as the Scotch Cookies, so you can lay them with about a 5cm gap inbetween.
• Wrap the base of a tumbler in cling film and lightly grease it with a little butter. Press the tumbler base onto the balls of dough to flatten.
• Heat the oven to 180°C, 160°C Fan.
• Bake for 13-15 minutes until nicely browned.
• Allow to cool on the baking sheets for a couple of minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Store in an airtight container.