flowering wattleseed biscuits recipe by christopher thé
The whiz behind the viral Strawberry Watermelon Cake (dubbed the world’s most Instagrammed cake) has brought out a book! Christopher Thé, a master pastry chef, founder of Black Star Pastry and owner of Hearthe Café, is letting you in on his tips and tricks for standout modern cakes, bread and pastries in his new book Modern Australian Baking. Inside, there are more than 80 savoury and sweet recipes, all rooted in native Australian ingredients, like this flowering wattleseed biscuit recipe!
This is an edited extract from Modern Australian Baking by Christopher Thé, published by Hardie Grant Books. Photography by Chris Chen.
‘Flowering’ wattleseed biscuits
I know that the end of winter is near when the sides of the highway are suddenly dotted with the bright-yellow pompoms of Australia’s national floral emblem, the golden wattle. The flowers of this species are edible, but I don’t find them as fresh or delicious as fennel flowers, which look similar but are far more pleasant to eat. Wattleseed, on the other hand, is wonderfully nutty, making it ideal for crunchy biscuits.
INGREDIENTS:
MAKES 10 BISCUITS
FOR WATTLESEED BISCUITS
160g (2⁄3 cup) butter, softened
80g icing (confectioners’) sugar, sifted
20g (approx. 1) egg yolk
240g plain (all-purpose) flour
20g ground wattleseed
FOR LEMON ICING
75g (1⁄2 cup) icing (confectioners’) sugar, sifted
40g lemon juice
50g fennel flowers (3–5 per biscuit)
SUBSTITUTIONS
wattleseed > caraway seed
METHOD
Cream the butter and sugar together until light. Add the egg yolk, mix well, then blend in the flour and wattleseed. Roll the dough into a log 5cm in diameter, wrap in plastic wrap and rest in the fridge until firm.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Cut the roll into 1cm thick discs and transfer to a baking tray lined with baking paper.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until the biscuits have turned golden brown at the edges.
For the icing, mix the sugar and lemon juice in a bowl then spread over the biscuits with a palette knife or the back of a spoon. Top with fennel flowers to resemble wattle. Leave to set for 1 hour.