I am of firm attitude that biscuits, both sweet and savoury, are one of the easiest and most rewarding pastries one can make.
Usually very quick to make with only a handful of ingredients, and there is always an abundance of them, to serve as a delightful snack, or a picnic item. And as a bonus, they do not take that much time to bake, and they can be served warm, right off the baking tray.
These little gems are full of roasted pumpkin, Feta cheese, and spices. The perfect savoury autumnal treat. Feel free to add some thyme, as well, they will pair wonderfully with cheese dips.
I love making them this tiny, but you can definitely make them larger if serving them to the little ones, or as a party hors d'oeuvre.
Ingredients
For the biscuits
50 grams roasted pumpkin purée
75 grams softened butter, unsalted
75 grams Feta cheese
200 grams plain flour
1 teaspoon mild chilli powder
⅛ teaspoon ground cumin
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
For the topping
1 large egg
2 teaspoons sea salt
Preparation
Place the pumpkin purée to a large bowl, add in the softened butter, and mash with a fork until creamy. It is fine if there are pieces of butter that are still visible. Add in the Feta and mash again, this time until blended. If you want to leave some larger pieces of Feta in the biscuits, you can, they will bake wonderfully either way.
Add in the flour, along with the chilli powder, cumin, baking powder, and the baking soda, and start mixing the ingredients with your hand until a soft, pliable dough forms. If it is warm in your kitchen, place the dough in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes to firm up. If not, proceed with the preparation.
Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the dough to about 3 millimetres thick. Working quickly, cut out rounds with a small cookie cutter (3 centimetres). Swiftly and briefly, knead the remaining dough, roll it out, and repeat the process. Line two large baking sheets with baking parchment, and arrange the biscuits. They will not spread much while baking, so the baking sheets can be a bit crowded.
Just before baking, brush each of them with a beaten egg and generously sprinkle them with coarse sea salt. Bake in a preheated oven, at 200°C, for about 8-10 minutes, or until golden. Serve immediately. Yields 90 small cheese biscuits.
