Saffron, pistachio and white chocolate Viennese biscuits
These Viennese-inspired butter biscuits will melt in your mouth! They're perfect for giving as a gift or just enjoying with a hot drink. The flavours of saffron, white chocolate and pistachio add an extra special touch. If you prefer, substitute white chocolate for dark or milk chocolate.
For this recipe, you will need a piping bag fitted with a large star-tipped nozzle.
Ingredients
- 175g/6oz plain flour
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú custard powder
- 40²µ/1½´Ç³ú icing sugar
- small pinch salt
- small pinch finely ground saffron (see recipe tip)
- 200g/7oz unsalted butter, very soft
- 100²µ/3½´Ç³ú white chocolate, melted
- 1 tbsp ground pistachios (see recipe tip)
Method
Preheat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5. Line a large, flat baking tray with baking paper.
Stir together the flour, custard powder, icing sugar, salt and saffron in a large bowl.
Add the softened butter and stir with a wooden spoon for about 4–5 minutes, or until the mixture comes together to form a very soft, sticky and creamy dough.
Transfer the biscuit dough to a piping bag fitted with a large star-tipped nozzle. Pipe the biscuit dough onto the baking tray in a tight 'S' motion – pipe back and forth until the biscuit is around 7cm/2¾in long and 5cm/2in wide. Repeat for all 10 biscuits or make 12 slightly smaller biscuits. Leave some room around each biscuit as they will spread slightly in the oven.
Bake in the centre of the oven for 15 minutes, or until the biscuits are lightly golden-brown all over. Leave to cool completely on the tray.
Melt the white chocolate in a bowl set over a saucepan of gently simmering water – do not allow the bottom of the bowl to touch the water. Leave to cool slightly.
Dip one half of the biscuits in the chocolate and set back down on the baking tray (take care as the biscuits are quite delicate). Once they've all been dipped, sprinkle pistachios over the white chocolate and leave to set at room temperature.
Serve immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Recipe Tips
Ground pistachios aren't available in many supermarkets, but you can find them online. Alternatively make your own from unsalted pistachios (which are widely available) – place the shelled nuts into a food processer and pulse until broken into small pieces. Take care not to over process or you could end up with an oily mess – less is definitely more! You won't get them as fine as they are when you buy them ground and it's best to stop as soon as you feel the pieces are small enough to use as decoration.
Ground saffron is also sold as saffron powder. The ground variety isn't available in many supermarkets, but you can use the saffron strands (which are in most larger supermarkets) and grind them to a powder in a pestle and mortar.
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