How To Ice Biscuits Beginner Food

SIMPLE ICED BISCUITS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Put the butter in a bowl and beat it using an electric whisk until soft and creamy. Beat in the sugar, then the egg and vanilla or lemon, and finally the flour to make a dough. If the dough feels a bit sticky, add a little more flour and knead it in.
• Cut the dough into six pieces and roll out one at a time to about 5mm thickness on a floured surface. The easiest way to do this is to roll the mixture out on a baking mat. Cut out letter and number shapes (we used 7 x 4cm cutters) and peel away the leftover dough at the edges. Re-roll any off-cuts and repeat.
• Transfer the whole mat or the individual biscuits to two baking sheets (transfer them to baking parchment if not using a mat) and bake for 7-10 mins or until the edges are just brown. Leave to cool completely and repeat with the rest of the dough. You should be able to fit about 12 on each sheet. If you are using two sheets, then the one underneath will take a minute longer.
• Ice the biscuits using the pens to make stripes or dots, or colour in the whole biscuit if you like. They will keep for five days in an airtight container.

BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 F Mix first 4 ingredients together in a bowl.
• Cut in butter with a pastry blender or a fork, or two knives, until crumbly.
• Add milk.
• Stir until it forms a ball.
• Add a bit more milk if necessary to make a soft dough.
• Roll or pat to 1 inch thick. (I usually pat the dough).
• Cut into circles with a biscuit cutter or a floured glass.
• Arrange on a greased baking sheet.
• Bake in 425 F for about 10- 12 minutes or until risen and nicely browned. (in my oven it usually takes 15 minutes).
• This is supposed to make 12, but I almost always only get 11 biscuits, with the size of the glass that I use.
• Variations: Try adding some fresh or dried herbs. Some good pairings are basil and oregano, or parsley and fresh ground black pepper, or thyme and garlic, or add some grated sharp or old cheddar cheese.

FANCY ICED BISCUITS

Steps:

• Line a couple of trays with baking parchment and heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Mix together the flour, salt, caster sugar and lime zest (keep the zested limes for the icing). Add the butter and rub together until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
• Beat the egg and vanilla bean paste together with a fork, then mix into the other ingredients. Knead until even. Chill until firm, then roll on a lightly floured surface until about 4-5mm thick. Stamp out 8cm rounds, transfer to baking trays, then chill again for 15 mins before baking for 15-17 mins until golden. Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool before decorating.
• For the icing, put the royal icing sugar into a bowl, add about 65ml lemon or lime juice and use a metal spoon or electric mixer to beat until it is fairly thick and glossy. If the icing is too thick though, it will be hard to pipe. Take a quarter of the icing, put into a piping bag fitted with a No 2 (very small round) piping nozzle and set aside. To see step-by-step images, please see the tips, below left, for a link to our guide page.
• For the flood icing, add another 10ml lemon or lime juice to the remaining icing, a few drops at a time until it is pourable. You can now divide this icing into as many bowls as you like and colour by mixing in a little gel food colouring.
• Place the coloured icing into three piping bags, ready for decorating.
• To decorate the biscuits, use the thicker icing to draw your outline or design onto the biscuits. Let the icing set for a few minutes.
• Pipe enough runnier icing to cover the entire biscuit - don't worry about it being neat at this point. Use a toothpick to spread the icing evenly inside the hard icing 'wall'. If the surface of the icing isn't flat, gently shake the biscuit back and forth until you have a smooth covering.
• To add a simple dot decoration, while the icing is still wet, use the runnier icing again to pipe dots again - this will sink on, leaving you with a smooth effect. Pop the biscuits onto a baking tray and place into an oven at its lowest setting for about 30 mins to allow the icing to set hard.

FLUFFY YEAST BISCUITS

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast in warm water and let set for 5 minutes.
• Mix together dry ingredients and add yeast mixture.
• Add shortening and mix.
• Roll out 1/4" thick and cut into biscuits.
• Dip in melted butter and place on baking sheet.
• Let rise for 1 1/2 hours.
• Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.

EASY BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°. In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add milk; stir just until moistened., Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead gently 8-10 times. Pat dough to 1/2-in. thickness. Cut with a 2-1/2-in. biscuit cutter., Place 1 in. apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, 10-15 minutes. Serve warm.

EASY BISCUITS

Steps:

• Combine and mix ingredients together. Pour out on floured waxed paper. Pat the dough out with your hands until dough is not sticky (add a little flour if necessary). Fold double. Cut biscuits with a biscuit cutter.
• Bake on a cookie sheet at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 20-25 minutes.