The Great British Bake Off is one my favorite shows, inspiring new bakes, new flavors, and new techniques! Join me on my journey to bake through all the Season 13 Challenges.
Since replicating Season 8 of the Great British Bake Off wasn’t enough, I decided to try my hand at a different season! This time, I am working on season 13 which is the most recent season! This season had some great bake ideas as well as some not-so-great ones (but we’ll get there when we get there).
So, I figured, let’s do this all again! One of the big challenges I wanted to attempt this time around was coming up with original ideas for the signature and showstopper challenges instead of doing a recreation. On your mark… Get set… Bake!
It’s time for the week two Technical; Garibaldi Biscuits! Yea… I have no idea. I guess this is a typical sweet snack you find in Great Britain? The contestants all seemed familiar with it but I don’t think they are sold in the United States.
Or maybe I just have never noticed them since I’m not a huge fan of the ingredients. These biscuits (cookies) are layers of dough that encase a mixture of currants and cranberries. I was lazy in finding currants so I’m just going to use a mixture of raisins instead.
I was surprised by the end results. Maybe it was cooking the currant and cranberries in orange juice, but I fell in love with this recipe. These were such as great pastry flavor that was accentuated by the fruits.
Check out the Season 13 Great British Bake-Off Page to see other bakes from this series or the Make section for more recipes! Leave a comment below and let me know what you think and how the recipe works for you!
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Ingredients
As I already mentioned, the most interesting ingredients in this recipe are the currants (or raisins) and dried cranberries. I guess the orange juice is also fairly unique as I don’t use a lot of orange juice in my baking.
The original recipe by Prue has the biscuits dipped in chocolate which I chose not to do. And honestly, I feel like the chocolate would have completely overtake then taste. I preferred this recipe without chocolate, but I would be open to trying it the other way.
Process
Cooking the Fruit
The process for making these biscuits came down to three mina steps: cooking the fruit, making the dough, and shaping the biscuits. The first step is to cook the fruit. This was a new process for me as it was something I had ever thought about doing.
I measured out the raisins, dried cranberries, and orange juice and threw them all into a pot. Then I cranked up the heat and let the orange juice come to a boil. The raisins and dried cranberries became less dry throughout the process. They kind of rehydrated in a weird way while simmering in the orange juice.
The acidity from the orange brightens up the fruits without overtaking their flavors entirely which is interesting. I really enjoyed the flavors from the fruits after they were simmering in the orange juice.
After the fruits were done cooking, I strained the juice away and let the fruits rest between paper towels. I was trying to reduce all that moisture I just reintroduced. I guess it’s more the juices that were on the outside that hadn’t been soaked up into the fruits.
Then I set this aside and moved onto the next part of the process: making the dough.
Making the Dough
The dough is a critical component of the garibaldi biscuits. The dough is very similar to a shortbread cookie where it has a crumbly texture, and a very pastry forward taste. I love it. The first step was combining the flour and salt before rubbing the butter into the mixture.
I tried to rub everything together using a stand mixer because I am lazy. Unfortunately for my lazy self, that did not work. Rubbing the butter into the flour with my hands was the best way to go about this process. I love the sand like texture that this process makes. It’s super fun to play with.
Then, going back to using the stand mixer, I mixed in the sugar. After everything was combined, I added in the egg and a little bit of water to add moisture to the dough. The stand mixture kneaded the dough a bit and brought everything together nicely.
I shaped the dough into a ball, wrapped it, and put it in the fridge to chill. Then it’s onto shaping the biscuits!
Shaping the Biscuits
So, I kind of fudged this step a little bit. The original recipe called for rolling the dough of the garibaldi biscuits into two 20 cm by 15 cm squares. Which to me was a 20 cm by 30 cm square. And I could not get the dough to roll out this thin. It just did not want to work with me.
I ended up rolling it out into a rectangle, as close to 20 cm by 30 cm as I could. Then I sprinkled the raisins and cranberries on one half of the dough. I used the other half of the dough to cover the top of the fruit. Did the dough work with me? No. Absolutely not.
But the nice thing about dough is that it can be manipulated and worked into the right shape if need be. Then I rolled out the dough again. This time, I wanted to make a 20 cm by 25 cm rectangle. This was a much easier accomplishment.
I then divided the dough into 12 even (ish) biscuits and brushed the top of the pastry in egg white. Then it was time for baking! The garibaldi biscuits did not cook for terribly long. Very much like a standard cookie. And after they came out of the oven, I was too impatient to add chocolate because they were ready to enjoy!
Reflections
This recipe a lot more interesting to make and way more delicious than I was expecting. While I’ve never had garibaldi biscuits before, these were an absolute delight. Definitely something I want to make again which I don’t always say about the technical recipes. It was a pleasant surprise!
Lessons
What is a Currant?
A currant is the raisin that comes from the small, sweet, seedless grape cultivar Black Corinth. While they are called grapes, they are more similar to berries that grow on shrubs like the gooseberry. They’re basically a specialized raisin (typically darker in color).
recipe
Garibaldi Biscuits
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Currants or raisins
- ¼ Cup Dried Cranberries
- ⅔ Cup Orange Juice
- ¾ Cup Self-Raising Flour
- Pinch of Salt
- 5 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter
- ⅛ Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Egg separated
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper of a silicone mat and set aside.
- In a small pan, mix the currants, dried cranberries, and orange juice. Bring to a boil over medium heat and let simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, drain fruit, and spread out over a plate with a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture.
- In a large bowl, sift together flour and salt.
- Rub in butter until a crumb like texture is achieved.
- Mix in sugar until combined.
- Add egg yolk and 1 tablespoon of water. Mix until a firm dough is formed.
- Knead into a ball and then flatten the ball into a disc. Chill for 20 minutes.
- Roll out the disc until about 3mm thick. Cut out two pieces shaped into a 20 cm by 15 cm rectangle.
- Lightly brush one rectangle with egg white. Scatter the currant and cranberries on top of the brushed pastry. Lay the remaining pastry rectangle on top.
- Roll out the layered pastry into a 25 cm by 20 cm rectangle.
- Cut into 12 biscuits, prick with a fork, and brush the remaining egg white on top of the pastry.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.
- Enjoy!!