Basic biscuit dough

Basic biscuit dough

This simple recipe for cookie dough can be adapted to suit your tastes- experiment with different shapes and flavours

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Makes about 30 cookies

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 5 mins

Cook time

Cook 15 mins

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian

Method

  1. Mix 250g softened butter and 140g caster sugar in a large bowl with a wooden spoon, then add 1 egg yolk and 2 tsp vanilla extract and briefly beat to combine. Sift over 300g plain flour and stir until the mixture is well combined - you might need to get your hands in at the end to give everything a really good mix and press the dough together.
Try

Little lemony fingers

Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Make the Basic biscuit dough, adding zest 2 lemons to the sugar and butter mixture. After chilling, roll out the dough to a rough rectangle, then use a pizza cutter or knife to divide the dough into long strips, about 10 x 2cm. Bake as above. For the icing, mix 140g sifted icing sugar with 4-5 tbsp lemon juice and the zest 1 lemon. When biscuits are cool, half dip them into the icing, then dry on a rack.

Triple chocolate treats - American-style biscuits

Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Make a batch of Basic biscuit dough, substituting 50g cocoa powder for 50g plain flour. Add 85g white chocolate chunks and 85g milk chocolate chunks, then mix well. Scoop the mixture into 12 large balls onto a non-stick baking sheet. Space well apart, as they will spread. Flatten slightly, bake for 12-15 mins, then transfer the soft, warm cookies to a cooling rack to firm up.

Crushed almond rounds

Prepare the Basic biscuit dough, substituting 2 tsp almond extract for the vanilla. Shape the dough into a large oval log, about 8-10cm in diameter, then roll in 100g finely chopped whole blanched almonds, pressing the nuts onto all sides. Carefully wrap in cling film, then chill or freeze. To cook, heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4, then slice off 1cm thick ovals with a sharp knife. Bake on a non-stick baking tray for 12 mins until pale gold, then transfer to a cooling rack to firm up.

Per serving

118 kcalories, protein 1.0g, carbohydrate 13.0g, fat 7.0 g, saturated fat 4.0g, fibre 0.0g, sugar 5.0g, salt 0.13 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, March 2007.

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Latest comments and suggestions

Results 41-60

  • Binder photo Milkybardave

    13 January 2010

    Milkybardave rated this recipe

    5 stars

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  • Binder photo Natalie

    27 January 2010

    Natalie rated this recipe

    5 stars

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  • Binder photo Iceyuk

    04 February 2010

    Iceyuk rated this recipe

    1 stars

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  • Binder photo stumpypolecat

    12 February 2010

    stumpypolecat rated this recipe

    4 stars

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  • Binder photo Miss_Sev

    21 February 2010

    Miss_Sev rated this recipe

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  • Binder photo DeeCeeLee

    10 March 2010

    DeeCeeLee rated this recipe

    4 stars

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  • Binder photo aboutua

    14 March 2010

    aboutua rated this recipe

    2 stars

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  • Binder photo Grace

    27 March 2010

    Grace rated this recipe

    5 stars

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  • Binder photo Nezz

    02 April 2010

    Nezz rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Great, you can add anything to it. Have used this hundreds of times now and it's always a hit. Variations I've used are mixed spice, oats, golden syrup, raisins, cherries, chocolate and cocoa powder, peanut butter... literally anything you want!

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  • Binder photo mamaninie

    09 June 2010

    mamaninie commented on this recipe

    Don't bother using cookie cutters with the kids for this recipe, as it is far too loose and buttery! Space them quite far apart too Very delicious though - a bit too much vanilla extract for my taste, I would reduce it to 1 tspn max. For kids I would just do round shapes or roll into a log, freeze and then slice. They can then do faces with raisins/bits of fruit before cooking or decorate with icing and bits and pieces once cooled

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  • Binder photo parlanchina

    17 June 2010

    parlanchina rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is the best biscuit recipe. I make the chocolate ones and when the dough is ready I put it into cling film and form a sausage shape which then goes in the freezer. Anytime we feel like a couple of biscuits, I put on the oven, slice off a few rounds from the frozen dough and there's fresh, tasty biscuits available in minutes! Great stuff!!

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  • Binder photo sarah jane

    19 June 2010

    sarah jane rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Fantastic recipe, biscuits turned out great me and my son loved them. I used almond extract instead of vanilla, then done some with choc chips for my son. Definately be making more of these.

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  • Binder photo yumi

    11 July 2010

    yumi rated and commented on this recipe

    1 stars

    it's too buttery for me...

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  • Binder photo cheryl roberts

    13 July 2010

    cheryl roberts commented on this recipe

    cookie dough isnt meant to be rolled out, its a dough!! not a pastry, nowhere on the recipe does it tell you to roll out so if you have done and it hasnt worked thats you're own fault, you can either handle into balls and flatten slighty on the tray or you can shape into one long sausage shape with your hands, chill or freeze then cut slices off to bake as required, if you did roll out the dough then they are likely to burn as they will be too thin

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  • Binder photo medisin

    24 July 2010

    medisin commented on this recipe

    Cheryl - There are different types of cookie dough. Some gets rolled out and some gets dropped onto the tray and some gets rolled into balls. The lemon version of the recipe says "After chilling, roll out the dough to a rough rectangle, then use a pizza cutter or knife to divide the dough into long strips". If you don't roll them out too thin, they won't burn. If anyone's having problems with the recipe, might be worth using an oven thermometer, as ovens aren't always running at the temperature you think they are :-)

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  • Binder photo ferraributterfly

    08 August 2010

    ferraributterfly rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    excellent basic recipe. try white chocolate and dried carnberries - yum!

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  • Binder photo Heidi

    19 August 2010

    Heidi rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is a fantastic, easy recipe and never fails to please children and adults alike. I also just make the plain ones and use a heart-shaped cookie cutter, trying to get the dough thickness just right through trial and error, as if it's too thin the biscuits will brown around the edges.

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  • Binder photo buble

    20 September 2010

    buble commented on this recipe

    definitly going to try this one =)

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  • Binder photo carolineharrison

    29 October 2010

    carolineharrison rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    amazing! a great basic, add lemon, orange, lime, chocolate, crushed peanuts, peanut butter, dried fruit, you can dollop, you can roll you can squidge, you can cut it, you can roll it into balls and plonk it staight into the oven, it's amazing!! have made welsh dragons (ok a cookie cutter) and coated them in red icing! also made some ghoulish ones and covered them in green "slime", keeps well too.

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  • Binder photo hilaryj70

    04 November 2010

    hilaryj70 rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    Easy to make & lovely biscuits, although mine took slightly longer to cook than in the recipe. I made two variations.....one adding a little orange extract & dark chocolate chips and the other adding chopped cherries and walnuts. I plan to make a number of batches with varying recipes to sell at a coffee morning I am holding for Naomi House children's hospice.

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Difficulty and servings

Easy

Makes about 30 cookies

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 5 mins

Cook time

Cook 15 mins

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 250g butter , softened
  • 140g caster sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 300g plain flour
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Per serving

118 kcalories, protein 1.0g, carbohydrate 13.0g, fat 7.0 g, saturated fat 4.0g, fibre 0.0g, sugar 5.0g, salt 0.13 g

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