This chocolate ginger biscuits recipe is a spicy twist on the classic chocolate biscuit, with an generous infusion of ginger. The best bit is the flecks of crystalised ginger that add an extra kick. If you love ginger then this combination with chocolate into a snappy biscuit is one you’re going to want to make for sure.
Please do not think for one second that it’s all plain sailing in a food blogger’s kitchen. Oooh no no no. Recipe creation involves a huge amount of trial and error before finding the perfect version to share. But then there’s that saying, “The person who never made a mistake never made anything” and in this case, a bit of trial an error has lead me to create a superb biscuit recipe which I think you’re going to love.
I had originally planned to be clever and switch the sugar out of these. But you know what? It just didn’t work and this recipe refuses to be healthy. So what the hell, I’m gonna let it be indulgent! After all I wanted this to be a traditional biscuit, and in no part of sweet biscuit history does sugar get swapped out. The spicy sweetness goes perfectly with a strong cup of coffee.
Ingredients for Chocolate Ginger Biscuits
- Makes 12 large biscuits
- 40g caster sugar
- 80g self raising flour
- 30g cocoa powder
- 1tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1tsp ground ginger
- 50g unsalted butter, softened
- 3 tbsp golden syrup
- 40g crystallised ginger, chopped
- 30g milk chocolate chips
Method
Pre-heat your oven to 190c and grease a baking tray. In a bowl add the dry ingredients: sugar, flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and ground ginger. Be sure to sift the flour and cocoa powder for best results.
Next add the butter, and with your hands rub the mixture until you have crumbs. Tip: run your hands under cold water beforehand to make them cool. This will prevent the butter from melting as you work with it.
Sprinkle in the chopped crystallised ginger and chocolate chips and stir. Finally add the golden syrup and mix until you get a thick cookie dough. The syrup will make it very thick so some elbow grease is required here to thoroughly combine it all!
Divide the mixture into quarters, then divide each quarter into thirds. This will create your 12 portions of biscuits. Roll each of the biscuit portions into balls. Place on the baking sheet and pat down into thick discs, about 1.5cm thick. Bake for 7-10 minutes*
Biscuit Baking Tip
These chocolate ginger biscuits are a traditional thin style, and so it is easy to over bake them. It is also hard to see if they are over-baking in the oven because of the cocoa content. I therefore recommend cooking them for less time if you have a modern oven, and only the full 10 minutes only if you have an older oven which you know takes a little longer. Leave these guys in too long and you’ll have a burnt, bitter biscuit… nobody wants that!
Remove and Cool
As they bake your biscuits will spread out a little in the oven and develop lovely cracks across the surface. When you remove them from the oven, place them on a wire rack to cool completely. Once cool, you should have lovely thin chocolate ginger biscuits with a satisfying crunch, being a little softer towards the centre.
My favourite thing about these chocolate ginger biscuits it the delicious chewy pieces of warm ginger which contrast the pockets of smooth, rich chocolate. Spicy, velvety goodness is what these biscuits are all about! If you’re a ginger fiend like myself then I recommend baking in double batches because they won’t last long!
Biscuit vs Cookie
It’s essentially battle of the UK vs the USA. Which is better? Can you even compare? In principal they aren’t dissimilar; the same kind of ingredients, similar presentation. But really they’re distant related cousins, not siblings.
Much like The States itself, cookies are big, larger than life and at times a little outrageous. They come in sizes as big as my face, with giant chocolate chunks and that famous gooey centre that, as #foodporn has become more and more of a thing, are increasingly gooey for those slow-mo breaking-apart shots on Instagram (I know you know the ones I mean). Cookies are the loveable extrovert of the baking world. We all know them, we all love them. Can’t miss ’em.
Biscuits however, like the British, are more reserved. Less obvious. Steady. They’ve been around since Roman times but the branded British biscuits were invented in the late 1800s during the industrial revolution when mass-produced foods took off. The chocolate chip cookie then followed in the 1930s. So if we’re picking a winner purely from the basis of who came first, then the biscuit wins hands down. But it all comes down to taste, right? Or in fact what really sets them apart: texture. Do you love soft and gooey, or refined and snappy? A rich and indulgent snack or a lighter nibble you can dunk into your cuppa?
I’ve always loved the crunch of a biscuit. Something like a Chocolate Bourbon is a real vice for me. I guess that’s why I really love the crunch that you get around the edges of this recipe, and I love the crunchy sugar coating of crystalised ginger. It creates the most satisfying texture to chomp through! Personally I can’t dunk these ones; not least because they are rather large round biscuits that would only fit into the widest of coffee mugs! But I live for that crunch, which for me contrasts with a nice strong Cappuccino with soft whipped cream on top.
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Nothing makes me happier than seeing you guys try my recipes. If you give these chocolate ginger biscuits a go I would love to see your creations! You can tag me at @jogirleatsworld. Happy eating!
