A Peace of Cake: Week 3, Italian Christmas Biscuits

In the run-up to Christmas the team at Peace Direct have decided to set up our own Great Christmas Bake Off! Each week we will be baking a series of Christmas-themed cakes, and posting our pictures and recipes online to give you some cake inspiration and get you in the Christmas mood. Following on from Carolyn’s delicious ginger bread cake, this week Lorena, our international programme’s intern, baked some Italian Christmas Biscuits. We’d love to hear from our supporters too so get involved and send in your own snaps and recipes!

Week 3, Italian Christmas Biscuits

Baked by Lorena Cotza, International Programme’s Assistant

Lorena has been with us for just over 6 months, helping our programme’s team to coordinate both our Africa and Asia partnerships.  This week she baked some traditional Italian Christmas biscuits, which the team tucked into straight away.

Ingredients

400g flour
200g sugar
80g butter
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
A tea-spoon of yeast
Lemon and orange zest
Vanilla flavour/ Cinnamon/ Rum

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 180C.
2. Grease and line your baking tin with greaseproof paper.
3. Mix two eggs, one egg yolk and the sugar into a mixing bowl.
4. Add 80g of softened butter and your flavouring (either vanilla, cinnamon or rum) to the mixture and beat it in.
5. Put this dough into the fridge for 40 minutes.
6. After your 40 minute wait transfer the dough onto a dusted worktop and roll out to about 5mm thick.
7. Add fresh lemon and orange zest and cut with your cookie mould.
8. Carefully lift your biscuits onto the prepared baking tin and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
9. Remove these from the oven and leave to cool. Following this add whatever decorations you have chosen.

Any good cake recipes? We’d love to hear from you! Comment below with your ideas.

If you enjoyed this like and share it with your friends to spread the Christmas spirit! And remember to watch out for next week’s recipe again baked by Lorena, a farewell cake as it will sadly be her final week with us here.