Essay About How to Make the Best Tasting Spicy Brandy Snaps. Vegetarian Friendly Recipe.

A Great Treat for any Time

Brandy snaps are wonderfully crisp, spicy little biscuits that taste great on their own or even better when filled with something like whipped cream. I have no idea why they are called brandy snaps as there isn’t any brandy in them, perhaps in the dim and distant past, they did include it. So with that in mind, I always put some brandy in the cream that I use to fill the snaps with.

Just add two tablespoons of brandy to half a pint of double cream and whip until light and fluffy. These lovely little sweet treats always remind me of Christmas and I like to make a huge batch around the festive holiday.

They are much too good to keep just for one time of year, I make some of these at least every six weeks and they always get eaten. For a bit of variety I sometimes dip a few curled brandy snaps into melted chocolate, just dip the ends and leave on some baking parchment to set. The quantity I’ve given here will make around twelve brandy snaps.

As an alternative to brandy, you can add something like Grand Marnier and a little orange zest to the cream, or try adding some very strong espresso coffee. These brandy snaps can be piled high on top of a coffee cake, or chocolate cake too, just spread a good amount of whipped cream on top of your cake and arrange the brandy snaps on top of the cream. Dust with icing sugar and you have a very sophisticated looking dessert.

Cook Time

Prep time: 10 minCook time: 15 minReady in: 25 minYields: Makes enough for six people

Ingredients

• 4tbls golden syrup
• 4oz butter, or vegan alternative
• 4tsp ground ginger
• 4oz white flour, sifted
• 4oz soft brown sugar
• pinch salt

Instructions

1. Put the golden syrup, butter and the brown sugar into a deep saucepan and heat gently until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved.
2. Stir in the sifted flour the ginger and the pinch of salt.
3. Remove from the heat and stir in the golden syrup.
4. Take two flat baking sheets and line them with greased proof paper, next drop tablespoons of the brandy snap batter on to the baking sheets. Space them out well as they will spread quite a bit as they cook
5. Put the brandy snaps into a moderate oven around 180c and cook for eight minutes.
6. The brandy snaps are cooked when they turn golden brown and bubbles appear on the surface. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for two minutes then carefully remove them from the paper.
7. Quickly roll each brandy snap around the handle of a wooden spoon. Leave the brandy snaps to cool on the spoon handles, they will harden and then you can slip them off.
8. This usually takes about thirty minutes If you find that the brandy snaps have hardened before you have had a chance to roll them on the spoons simply return them to the oven for a minute or two and they will soften up again

Wooden Spoons for sale on Amazon

Kitchen Wooden Spoons Mixing Baking Serving Utensils Puppets 12 In – 12 PackThese are the wooden spoons I always use. This pack will last for years, they are well made and the handles are really smooth. I colour code the handles, red for savoury dishes and green for sweet, to avoid tainting desserts with garlic or curry.

These brandy snaps will keep quite well in an airtight container for a couple of weeks. They taste great with coffee or you can stick one or two in a large glass filled with your favourite ice cream. If I am keeping them in a tin I like to line it with a couple of sheets of kitchen paper, it helps to keep them crisper.

Make it Vegan

These great tasting little biscuits can be made suitable for vegans by using a vegan spread instead of butter and filling them with a cream substitute such as coconut cream. There are also a lot of vegan-friendly cream substitutes on the market, I find the ones made from soft, silken Tofu to be very good. They make single and whipping cream substitute,

I have found that the best results are obtained when the cream is not overworked. Too much whipping and you might find that your cream relaxes back to a more liquid state. You can add a little bit of cornflour to the Tofu to help it thicken.

You really won’t be able to tell the difference. This is also a good way to allow people who are lactose intollerant to enjoy these brandy snaps.