Chocolate Rush- Chocolate, Tahini, and Marmalade Biscuits

 

Chocolate, Tahini, and Marmalade Biscuits

I chose the Chocolate, Tahini, and Marmalade Biscuits as my second recipe because let’s be honest: we all have that mostly full jar of tahini that’s been sitting in our pantry after using 1 Tablespoon of it for that one recipe that one time. My jar of tahini had been neglected for several months, and the idea of using it for a sweet application was just odd enough to convince me it would be delicious.

The biscuit dough ended up being extremely crumbly and looked too dry. I had to work it quite a bit to force it into one mass. I was torn between following the recipe exactly or trusting my intuition and adding extra moisture. In the end, I stuck to the recipe and just hoped the dough would further hydrate while chilling in the fridge. Although it did hydrate slightly more, the rolling out process still yielded several cracks and proved to be the most frustrating part. Rolling out the dough while trying to maintain it’s integrity, cutting the biscuits into uniform sizes, and poking 6 holes in each ended up taking the better part of an hour. I was worried that the biscuits would be brittle after baking but to my surprise they held up well and did not break easily during sandwich assembly. I have to say, these biscuits were not the star of the show. The level of chocolate impact was so low I’m not sure I’d identify it as such in a blind taste test, and they were not buttery enough to be a satisfying shortbread-type cookie. These biscuits were essentially just a vehicle for the real star of the show: the tahini buttercream.


I cannot emphasize enough how dreamy this tahini buttercream is. Until now I had only used tahini in savory recipes such as dressings and sauces and let me tell you- I was missing out. It’s thick and creamy, melts on your tongue, and brings just the right amount of savory to balance out the sweetness. I love that it’s a little different from the more common savory-sweet peanut butter buttercream while still offering the same benefits. I piped three large mounds onto each biscuit half and still had a ton leftover, so unless I didn’t put enough on or had another use for the leftovers, I would halve this part of the recipe next time.


Assembly was pretty quick, but I found that eating the sandwiches right then was not easy. The buttercream was too soft and smushed out under the firm biscuits which did not snap easily between my teeth. However, after the sandwiches had been chilled for a couple hours, the buttercream was firm enough to hold its shape and allowed for a much tidier experience.

This recipe required far more time and energy than the last one I tried and in the end I’m not sure it was worth all the fuss. The exception being the tahini buttercream, which I plan to pair with my next loaf of banana bread. I personally would prefer a short biscuit like this to have a more mouth-watering effect, so I need to figure out how to increase the buttery texture and chocolate flavor. I will say that these biscuit sandwiches disappeared within a couple hours of sitting in the break room at work, so although I have my critiques, they are cookies at the end of the day and were still easily enjoyed!




Comments